


236 Days

by spaceorphan



Category: The Office (US)
Genre: Angst, Drunkenness, F/M, Fluff, Humor, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-27
Updated: 2019-10-27
Packaged: 2021-01-04 22:17:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 30,520
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21204956
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spaceorphan/pseuds/spaceorphan
Summary: Pam and Jim's life behind the cameras over the course of 8 months. Set during season 2 and a sequel to What the Cameras Don't Show





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Apparently, this a sequel to What the Cameras Don't Show. Huh - amazing what I've found with this old fic. Enjoy!

Day 1: 7:09 am  
She had been enjoying a dreamy sleep when the buzzing from her alarm woke her with a start. She smashed her hand against the button, wishing that snooze lasted longer than nine minutes. With a groan she opened her eyes and stared at the dark red numbers, not wanting to get up. Stretched her arms out across the bed she suddenly realized he was no longer next to her. She sat up wondering how he was able to get up before her when she always had to push him out of bed.

She dragged herself out of bed and only made it a few steps when she stubbed her toe on one of the many boxes that littered the room. It was still dark out; the shades were down and she had forgotten that she had to be more careful when walking around. She sat on the bed and rubbed her toe, hoping the shooting pain would die down in a minute. She took a second to look at the unfamiliar surroundings. It was day three in the new townhouse, everything was still in boxes and while she loved that she was living with him now, she lamented that they hadn’t had time to unpack.

In the distance she heard the shower start. She groped for the light switch so that she could make her way across the room without stumbling over anything else and began to groggily head towards the bathroom. She moved as if on autopilot, entering the bathroom, doing her business and washing her hands. She could hear him whistling and wondered why a man, who usually would groan when she nudged him awake everyday, seemed to be in such a good mood.

She pushed the shower curtain back to see him standing there, naked and soapy, with a big dopey grin on his face. She shook her head and undressed easily before stepping in to join him. The warm water felt good on her skin and she stood there motionless with her eyes closed while the steam surrounded her.

“Morning,” he said cheerfully. She could feel his wet lips brush her forehead.

“Why are you so happy?” she asked.

“The Dundies,” he replied too brightly for her taste. She let out a groan. “Come on, Pam, you love the Dundies. I’m pretty sure we’re locked in for Most Boring Couple. We’ll have a nice trophy to put with the other three.”

“You go then,” she said with a frown. She didn’t hate the Dundies but Michael made it difficult for anyone to ever truly enjoy them. Except for Jim, who always seemed to enjoy them and took pride in the fact that they did win Most Boring Couple every year. She often wished Michael would stop making the awards show so predictable. But the Dundies wasn’t what she was dreading. It was something else. “The documentary crew is coming back today,” she reminded him.

“So?” he asked as if it were no big deal. He brushed her hair over her shoulder and began to run the soapy sponge gently over her back, washing her as he always did when she would join him in the shower and refuse to actually clean herself. “They weren’t that bad the first time.”

“Weren’t that bad?” she complained. She thought back to the week the documentary crew came to Dunder-Mifflin. True, Jim didn’t find them nearly as intrusive as she had but neither liked that for that week they had to pretend to be people they weren’t and hide the relationship they had. So far, no one had mentioned that they had to go back to that act but the feeling in her stomach was ominous.

“Oh, come on, Pam,” he said, moving the sponge lower to caress her ass. “That was only what, five, six days? We handled it fine then, I promise it will be fine now.”

She turned to face him, admiring his optimism. Work was hard enough without the cameras and she was glad he was always there with her. “You promise?” she asked with a hopeful half-smile.

“Yeah,” he nodded assuring.

“And if it’s a complete disaster, I can blame you?”

“Totally.” He slid his hand up her torso, pausing to cup her breast and give it a playful squeeze. “Hey, you know what we haven’t done in here yet,” he stated with a mischievous smile.

She grinned and pulled him down for a kiss.

9:37am  
Pam squirmed in her chair. Jim, who was sitting next to her and was usually the restless one, sat very still, listening intently to what was being said. This time it wasn’t Michael who was giving a speech at the front of the conference room, it was Jen Wilson, the blonde, tight-nosed producer of the documentary being shot at Dunder-Mifflin. She had been speaking to the entire staff about the documentary and how they planned to be shooting over the next eight months. Eight months, in which Pam anticipated her coworkers to act ten times worse than usual; all of them wanting the documentary to be their ticket to fame and fortune. Two hundred and thirty-six days to be exact, Jen explained to them. And Pam knew she’d be dreading every moment of it.

Michael was already on his worst behavior. It was bad enough that tonight was the Dundie Awards, but with the cameras around she knew he would waste the entire day preparing for that, leaving her to pick up his slack. It didn’t matter that he sometimes proved to be a good salesman; she often wondered how many customers they lost due to Michael’s inability to manage. Pam slumped in her chair wishing they could go about their day and not even be bothered.

“So, I think that just about wraps up what we need to go over,” Jen was explaining with her false smile. Pam’s dislike for the woman grew every time she saw her. “Oh,” she said, her eyes widening as she caught Pam’s eyes. “That reminds me. I want you all to know that like last time, our benefactor wants us to continue our little love storyline so remember, your coworkers here,” she pointed at Jim and Pam, “are not a couple.”

“Whoa, what?” Jim asked seeming as confused as she was. No one on the documentary crew had come to talk with them about the situation. “I thought that contract ended when the documentary was wrapped up last time?”

“Yeah,” Pam agreed hopefully. “No one came to talk to us about a new contract. I thought that was a one time deal.”

“You know what everyone, the meeting is over. If you have any questions you can ask me in a few minutes. I would like to talk with Pam and Jim alone, please.” Everyone began to file out as Jen opened the briefcase that rested on the table. She pulled out two thick piles of paper and plopped them down. “These are the new contracts.”

Pam looked over at Jim with an astonished face. “What?” she said a little in disbelief of the huge stack of paper in front of them.

Jim reached over and flipped through the first one. “What’s in it? What are the terms?” he asked.

“Oh, it’s not that different from last time,” she began. “The two of you downplay your relationship whenever the cameras are around. Occasionally, we’ll give you a ‘scene’ or two to act out to move the story forward and answer a few questions in your interviews we have prepared for you but other than that, Jim, you show you’re in love with Pam and Pam, you don’t seem to notice. Just like last time. Of course, Pam, you will still have to pretend to be engaged to Roy. There is no way we would give that angle up.”

“And what do we get out of it?” Pam asked not entirely sure she would be satisfied with any offer they would give.

“Ten thousand dollars up front and another five thousand dollars a month,” Jen said. “I know you guys are engaged. If we get some great footage during our stay, maybe our benefactor will chip in to help you out with your wedding.”

“Why do you expect us to go along with any of it?” Pam asked. The deal seemed almost too good to be true and she wanted to make sure they weren’t getting in over their head.

“Because it’s good television,” Jen replied simply but that answer was not satisfactory for either of them. “Look, our benefactor is giving your company a lot of money to shoot this documentary. In return the company gets a ton of publicity when it comes out. We know that corporate is looking to shut down a branch. You could sign the contract and we continue to pay the company to shoot here, which will in turn keep this branch open or you don’t sign them and we take our money and project elsewhere, which leaves corporate with an easy choice of which branch to close down. Your company is barely keeping afloat financially and if it means cutting one of their losses, particularly this branch that is performing the worse, they’ll do it. It’s your choice.”

“You people are horrible and I don’t think I want to be apart of it,” Pam said vehemently.

Jen turned her attention to Jim who had been unusually quiet. “Jim, what do you think?” she asked.

Jim looked carefully from Pam to Jen then back to Pam again. “Jen, can Pam and I speak alone for a second?” Jen nodded and left the room.

“You want to sign it,” Pam accused after Jen shut the door. “Do you really want to spend the next eight months pretending we’re not together?”

“No, I really don’t,” Jim admitted. “But, Pam, they’re offering us fifty-thousand dollars. Plus, they may pay for the wedding. I don’t know if we should be so quick to pass up that opportunity. We could save up for a house…”

“I like the townhouse,” Pam interjected even though she didn’t want to admit she would love a real house.

Jim continued. “We could go on a honeymoon to anywhere you’d want to go. I just think, maybe, the money would be useful.”

“But look at the cost,” Pam argued. She grabbed one of the contracts off the table and began to flip through. “Do you realize what this is? They’ll have complete control over our lives at work. There is a list of regulations we have to follow, along with a list of fines for breaking the rules. It means eight hours a day can’t be ourselves. Eight hours a day that I have to be aware that every time I look at you I’m not allowed to express how I feel.”

Jim starred solemnly at the floor. “I understand Pam, and I feel the same way but I also don’t want to be responsible for the loss of everyone’s jobs.” He said finally. “Do you? I just--I don’t know if I could handle the guilt. Yeah, this whole situation sucks. They’re bribing us into something we don’t want to do but Pam, there are plenty of couples out there who go to work every day and not even see their significant other. Do you know how lucky I feel just to be able to look up from my desk during a stressful day at work and see you sitting there? And, of course, actors do this all the time…”

“We’re not actors,” Pam reminded him.

“I know,” he said with a sigh. “But maybe now we are. We can get through this, Pam, I know it.”

Pam frowned but she understood where Jim was coming from. She knew a sense of guilt would get her as well if the branch closed. And as much as she hated to admit it, they could use the money. “Alright,” she said. “I’ll agree to do this under one condition. If it gets to be too hard, if they start asking us to do crazy things, we put in our two weeks notice. We can put our resumes together, start looking for new jobs because if this goes bad, I don’t want to stay in it.”

“I’ll go along with that,” Jim told her. “Any sign that this is a bad situation, we bail, okay?” Pam nodded. “Okay, I’ll go get Jen.”

11:04am  
Pam shifted her weight in the chair; her butt was beginning to hurt and her eyes were becoming strained from watching the television for the last hour. Michael had given her the task of watching every previous Dundie Awards so she could put together a highlight reel. Seven long tapes filled with bad jokes and horrible impressions. She was amused, at first, by the ones that occurred before she had arrived, especially the ones before Michael was regional manager, but the novelty wore off quickly and now she was just bored.

She was at least grateful she was doing this task instead of some other inane thing Michael cooked up. She had been worried, with all the time Michael was spending in his office, that she’d have to take care of all the Dunder-Mifflin business Michael was missing but instead that had been dished out to everyone else. She now felt only a little bad about writing what she did on the wall of the bathroom. She had been feeling particularly vindictive that morning and needed to take it out on someone. The girls all had a good laugh over it and Dwight looked as though he’d do anything to read it but it was all in good fun. If Michael ever saw it, he’d probably laugh.

Pam got the next tape ready and realized it was her first Dundies Awards. With a smile, she popped it in. Everyone filed in and she saw a younger version of herself take a seat near a younger version of Jim. They had been dating six months at that point and she got a warm feeling when she was reminded of the time early in their relationship.

As the tape rolled on, one of the cameramen came in. She sighed a little but turned her attention back to the TV screen and pretended he wasn’t there. He said nothing, as usual and took a seat next to her, occasionally panning from the television to her reaction.

She watched as a numerous amount of people received their awards, a half dozen or so who no longer worked there. She wondered what some of them were doing today. Her thoughts were interrupted when the Michael on the video announced his next award was going to Jim and Pam. She remembered being excited for receiving one, though a little nervous as well because she was already aware of how Michael treated his employees. The Most Boring Couple Award, Michael had just announced in the video. She remembered being incredibly stunned when he had given them that. She didn’t think they were boring but who knew what went on in Michael’s head.

She remembered the scene fondly as she watched Jim walk up to retrieve the award. Then, she noticed the cameraman there and thought the sight of Jim giving Pam a congratulatory kiss on the TV would not be good for the documentary.

“So, you guys are gonna have to edit this out, right?” Pam asked casually. She rarely interacted with the cameraman unless asked a direct question.

“Edit or doctor the tape,” he replied in a gruff voice. “We do that stuff all the time.”

“Really?” she asked. She wasn’t sure why she was so surprised by that.

A few minutes later, the screen showed Kevin sitting down in front of the camcorder. She had forgotten he had done that and now all she had was audio. She sighed and rested her head on her hand as she listened.

2:22pm  
Pam took her break as soon as she was able to get one. Jim was already in the break room snacking on a bag of chips and soda. She sat next to him and grabbed a few chips for her own.

“Hey,” she said as she stuffed them in her mouth. “I didn’t have that big of a lunch, sorry.” She held her hand out so the crumbs falling down her face wouldn’t spill on to the table.

“Yeah, I can see that,” Jim said as he pushed the bag closer her to her.

“I’m going to have a huge dinner at Chili’s tonight,” she explained, grabbing a few more. She was about to put them in her mouth when she saw one of the cameramen come around the corner. They both stared at him for a second as he got a shot of the two of them then, since they weren’t doing or talking about anything interesting, he went back out. Pam let out a grunt. “You know they’re going to doctor those old Dundie tapes so they will fit their documentary?”

“Really?” Jim asked, taking a sip of soda. “That doesn’t seem necessary.”

“It’s probably not,” she continued. “But they want all their bases covered. The camera guy was telling me about it. They haven’t been here a whole day and I already feel like my privacy is being invaded.”

“Well, technically it is,” Jim agreed. “But it hasn’t been so bad, has it?”

“I just don’t like how you look up and they’re right there,” Pam commented holding her hands out for emphasis. She took his soda and washed down the chips. “I mean, it’s a little unnerving and it’s making me feel self-conscious.”

“Why, are you doing something bad?” he joked. She gave him a glare. “I know it’s not ideal,” he amended.

“Why did they even have to pick our branch?” Pam complained. “I blame Michael for being such a moron.”

“Oh, god, speaking of Michael,” Jim started. “I spent a majority of this afternoon having to help him pick awards to give out to people. It’s going to be painful. And, as always, he was going to give us the Most Boring Couple Award, but because the cameras are here that needed to be changed. Do you have any idea how long it took to get him to understand that it needed to be? Plus, Jen had this script all lined up. I think they have you winning the Longest Engagement Award or something to cover up the Most Boring Couple award. Yeah, and Michael didn’t even get that when I tried to explain that you and Roy had to win an award, not you and me.”

Pam gave a little moan. “Longest Engagement? To Roy? How long are we supposed to have been engaged?”

“Three years, I think,” Jim replied.

“Oh my god, Jim, there is no way I would wait three years to get married,” she informed him seriously. “You’d think they have us sit down and work all of this out.”

Jim held his hands up. “Maybe they think if we improv the whole thing it’ll more realistic.”

Pam shook her head. “So, if Michael had this much of a problem with our situation, do you think everyone else will?” she asked.

“Nah,” Jim said shaking his head. “I don’t think anyone cares all that much and none of them are as dense.”

“So, what awards are we getting?” she asked, a little hesitant to hear the answer. Michael was not known for giving out friendly awards and she didn’t feel like being horribly embarrassed in front of the cameras. Most Boring Couple was almost a comfort to win every year if it meant Michael would overlook some other embarrassing aspect of their lives.

“I don’t know,” Jim replied honestly. “He kicked me out after I told him it was not nice to give Kevin…well, you’ll just have to see for yourself. Anyway, he’s completely stressing himself out over tonight. Hence the major breakdown he just had.”

“Oh, you mean about how he wants everyone to have a great Dundies? Yeah, he does that every year though,” Pam reminded him, picking some crumbs out of the chip bag. “It can be expected. And of course everything is much more dramatic with the cameras around. You know he is going to be horrible all year. All they do is encourage his bad antics.”

“I know, I know,” Jim agreed.

“Well, we get to bring our families,” Pam mentioned, pretending as if it were some great consolation prize. She couldn’t ever imagine seriously bringing anyone related to her to the silly awards show.

“Hmm…” Jim rubbed his chin. “I should ask my fiancée if she wants to go.” He gave her a smile in hopes of cheering her up.

“She doesn’t want to go,” she groaned. “But I’ll be sure to ask my fiancé because he loves lame things like this.”

“Yeah, you aren’t being nice today,” Jim responded.

She placed her head on his shoulder. “I’m sorry, I’m just- I hate days like these. Oh, that reminds me. Since we’re talking about fiancés, Roy is picking me up tonight at our place and taking me over there.” Jen had come to speak to her about it an hour or so ago and while Pam hated the idea, Jen insisted that she and Jim do not come together. It would look better if she came with Roy, Jen had explained, but Pam wasn’t sure how that could be the case.

“Ok,” Jim said slowly. “Am I taking you home?”

“I don’t know,” she said honestly. “Probably. There’s no point in Roy doing it if you’re right there.”

“Well, with that logic, there’s no point in Roy picking you up, either,” Jim pointed out.

She and Jim had talked about Roy a little the first time around but never extensively and she wasn’t entirely sure where he stood on the subject. She hated the idea that she had to pretend to be engaged to anyone else but Jim never said anything about it. If anything, his dissatisfied looks gave him away but he never complained.

“Maybe I can stage a break-up with Roy and he’ll go away,” Pam suggested.

“I’m all for that,” Jim agreed jokingly. Though they both knew, realistically, that it would break one of the many regulations in the contract and any attempt to sabotage what the documentary crew wanted would result in a huge fine.

“I don’t know,” Pam said shaking her head. “It’s a shame we can’t plot out the story ourselves. I still feel uncomfortable about the whole thing.”

“It’s just acting,” he assured her. “It’s not like you have to actually do anything with him. He’s just…there. Like some unwanted lump or something.”

Pam let out a laugh. “Can I tell Roy that?”

“Uh…no, he’s a lump that could probably beat the crap out of me,” Jim responded.

Pam gave another laugh followed by a long sigh. They sat there in silence for a moment while Jim finished off the rest of the soda.

“Hey, by the way,” Jim finally said, “did you write something on the bathroom wall about Michael?”

5:42pm  
“He’s late.”

“Did you expect anything less?”

“I expected him to be on time.”

Pam was pacing around her living room, her jacket already on, her purse clutched in her hands. “He was supposed to be here ten minutes ago.” She checked her watch again just to make sure she was reading it right. “I mean it takes twenty minutes to get out there.”

“It only takes ten,” Jim assured her. He was sitting relaxed on the couch, watching amused as she walked back and forth. “Why is this getting you all worked up? I thought you didn’t care about the Dundies?”

“I don’t,” she answered firmly. “But I don’t like to be late either. And I just want to get this over with.”

“Well, I’ll be later than you. I’m not even going to leave until you’re gone.” He pushed himself off the couch and grabbed her shoulders to stop her pacing. “It will be fine. You don’t have anything to worry about. It’s just like any other Dundies.”

“Easy for you to say, you don’t have to go with Roy,” Pam complained.

Jim gave her a kiss on the forehead. “You’ll be fine,” he assured her.

Pam put her arms around his waist and rested her head on his chest. “This is gonna suck.”

He laughed and gave her a hug.

A moment later there was a knock on the door. Jim answered and there Roy stood, still dressed in his warehouse uniform. Pam was slightly annoyed and wondered what took him so long if he hadn’t even bothered to change.

“Hey guys,” Roy said as the door opened. He looked awkward stepping into the townhouse. The first time the cameras filmed, Pam, Jim and Roy all sat down to set up some boundaries. Jim and Pam told Roy that they were fine with anything the documentary crew gave them to do. Roy agreed with that and stated that he wouldn’t cross any lines that seemed inappropriate. Talking about the pretend relationship and flirting were fine but any touching would have to be okayed with Pam first. There hadn’t been any problems the first time and Pam didn’t worry too much about Roy the second time; it was mostly the situation itself she protested. They agreed that afternoon that the guidelines they set up the first time would be used then. If any out of the ordinary situation arose, they agreed to all talk about it first to make sure everyone was on the same page.

“Hey Roy,” Jim said in a friendly manner. Roy didn’t meet Jim’s eye-line. Pam found it amusing that Roy felt more uncomfortable then Jim in the situation and that Roy, in the past, had been very respectful of the both of them.

“Ready to go?” he asked Pam.

“Yeah, I’ve been waiting,” Pam told him impatiently.

“Oh, yeah, I’m so sorry about that,” Roy said though he didn’t seem all that apologetic. “There was some crazy traffic and I couldn’t remember which one was your place.”

Pam let out a sigh. Jim smiled and gave her a quick kiss on the lips. “Have fun,” he told her. “I’ll see you there.”

With that, Pam reluctantly followed Roy out to his truck. At least Roy tried to be a gentleman at first, opening the door for her and helping her into the truck but he hadn’t bothered to clean the vehicle before he arrived. It smelled of alcohol and stale food. Wrappers and garbage were scattered everywhere. And there was something sticky on the seat that she worried would get on her jacket. Pam stared out the window as he drove.

Roy, however, didn’t seem to like the silence and tried to make small talk. “So, Halpert is cool with all of this? I mean me taking you to the show and stuff?”

“Would you be cool with all of this?” she asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Oh, yeah, probably not,” Roy replied. “But, man, it’s not like we’re going to do anything or anything. I totally wouldn’t touch you unless you said I could. You know, like we talked about.”

Pam nodded her head. “Uh, thank you.” She smiled to herself. She was surprised that Roy seemed to be more worried of how Jim would react with her than Jim worried about Roy. She hadn’t thought that would be the case.

“So, do you know how long we have to stay tonight?” Roy asked.

“I don’t know,” Pam responded simply.

“So, like an hour or two hours?”

“I don’t know,” Pam repeated a little harsher this time. “Why, do you have somewhere you need to be?”

“Well, yeah I think I have a date tonight. This chick I met at Poor Richard’s last night said she’d meet me there tonight,” Roy explained. “And she’s totally hot. Uh, I mean, not that you’re not hot. I mean…well you know what I mean. Wait, if we have to do this pretend thing, does that mean I can’t ask out girls?”

Pam’s jaw dropped a little. How he managed a ten-year relationship with someone was beyond her. “I think you can ask out anyone you want and I have no idea what time we’ll get done.”

“Hey, you know what would be really cool,” Roy said, his eyes growing wide in excitement. “If we had a breakup scene to do. That would be, like, totally awesome to do. We would get to yell and stuff. That producer chick said we’re playing the whole thing by ear, but still. How cool would that be?”

“Yeah, that would be great for everyone,” Pam said blandly. She wondered if the people who would eventually watch this documentary would actually buy her being engaged to Roy. She didn’t think she could stand ten more minutes with the guy.

“Hey, what if…”

“Why don’t we listen to some music?” she asked. She knew he was just trying to be friendly but she didn’t feel like answering any more questions. Roy turned on the radio and the bass began to blare some heavy rap music. Pam rubbed her head and realized how grateful she was that she had Jim and his taste in music. “It’s a little loud, don’t you think?” she screamed.

“What?” Roy asked.

Pam turned down the radio for him. “I said it’s a little loud.”

“Really?” Roy asked in disbelief. Pam shook her head.

She kept her eyes out the side window and didn’t say another word until Roy passed the street that led to the highway. “Roy, you missed the turn,” she informed him.

“Oh, I know,” he responded, tapping on the wheel to the beat of the music. “Have to get Darryl.”

Pam groaned. The truck barely held the two of them. She wasn’t looking forward to being squished between Roy and Darryl for the rest of the car ride.

6:19pm  
By the time Pam arrived with Roy and Darryl, she had a massive headache. Once Darryl got in the car, they not only had squished her but Roy insisted they turn back up the music. She might have been fine with just that but then Roy and Darryl started a massive, loud conversation about fantasy football. For some reason, when Jim talked with his guys friends about fantasy football it didn’t seem nearly as obnoxious or annoying.

On top of that, they had to interject raunchy comments about everything. Pam wasn’t necessarily a prude but she didn’t need to know about the girl Darryl had recently met, how much of her body the woman had shaved nor what positions she could twist herself into. She was incredibly relieved when they finally made it to the restaurant.

Jim had already been seated at a table up front next to Ryan. The hostess had brought them back to a booth but Pam insisted they take the table next to Jim. She didn’t tell them this, mostly for fear of ridicule, but she wanted to feel as close to Jim as she could. Roy complained about being up front but obliged anyway and then asked if she was willing to pick up that night’s check. She reminded him that he had to pay for himself, which caused him to whine more about the situation. When she went to seat herself, she went to grab the chair closest to Jim but Roy pulled it out from her. At first she thought he was offering it to her but then he plainly sat down. To Pam’s chagrin, she took the middle seat.

“Man, the food here sucks,” Roy criticized when the waitress handed him the menu. “Why are we even bothering eating here when we can just get food at Poor Richard’s?”

“Why can’t we go straight there?” Darryl asked. “I doubt Michael even remembered to give any of the warehouse members awards. He never does.”

Pam thought they were both being over critical of Michael but didn’t say anything when she realized what she was thinking. She looked over at Michael who looked a tad pathetic in his tuxedo setting up his equipment with Dwight. The cameramen had arrived also and were setting up off to the side. Many of the Chili’s customers and staff watched in wonderment at the proceedings.

Roy and Darryl went into their fantasy football debate again and Pam peeked her head around Roy so she could get a look at Jim. He was too busy nursing a beer and chatting with Ryan to notice. She wondered if she just got up and left for the other table if anyone would notice or care. She pushed back her chair and was about to leave when she realized she was trapped between Darryl and Roy and would literally have to push one or the other of them out of the way to get through. She sighed, put an elbow on the table and rested her head on her hand. She hoped the night would get better than this.

“Hey, I don’t think we need to stay for all of this,” Darryl commented as he watched Michael put on a hoodie over his suit jacket. “Whatever is going to happen, I don’t think I need to be apart of it.”

“Hey, let’s just go to Poor Richard’s now,” Roy suggested. “I want you to see the chick I picked up.”

“Aw, man, do you think I really believe you picked up some woman last night without me?”

“Yeah, man,” Roy insisted. “And dude, she is totally hot. I mean the hottest babe ever.”

“Yeah, right man,” Darryl came back.

Pam finally interjected. “If you guys want to leave so badly, why don’t you just do it? Just tell the producer you’re going to leave.”

Roy’s eyes grew wide with delight. “Do you think she’d let us?”

Pam didn’t know, but it would be worth the try since none of them were obligated to be there. Then she could finally get over to Jim’s table. “Why don’t you go ask?”

Roy and Darryl left the table to head on over to where Jen was discussing something with the cameramen. Pam was grateful for at least a minute of peace. She glanced over at Jim who happened to be watching. He gave her a curious look and she returned it with a hopeful one.

6:56pm  
Pam rubbed her arm where Roy had grabbed it. He had left just a minute ago after an argument she never wanted to have and then he grabbed her arm to force her to go with him. She hadn’t anticipated that action and when he was gone, she stood there looking flabbergasted. This was not how she envisioned the night to go at all.

When the cameras stopped rolling, of course, Roy apologized profusely. It wasn’t his idea to grab her; it wasn’t even his idea to argue. She knew Roy seemed like a tough guy but mostly he was a dumb lug. But she was glad he and Darryl were finally gone. She would go back in to the restaurant and act like everything was alright. Later, of course, she would tell Jim but there was no point in upsetting him now. And he would be upset. She just had to remind him that it hadn’t been Roy’s idea.

No, it was Jen’s idea. Darryl and Roy wanted to get out of there so badly that Jen saw the whole thing as an opportunity for more drama. When they made it out to the parking lot, Jen came running with a cameraman in tow and told them to argue before Roy took off. Like nearly every staged moment she had with Roy, they improvised the whole scene, which was bad enough because Pam hated to argue. Fighting rarely ever happened between her and Jim and she wasn’t used to such a heated opponent. And Roy got heated. So heated that he had grabbed her arm, harder than he probably ever intended. At least he was overly apologetic the moment after.

When that happened, it was all over and Pam was glad. Her adrenaline from the argument was finally lowering and she began to shiver in the cold air but she needed another minute before going back inside.

“That was amazing,” Jen said, coming up from behind and startling her. “I think we got some great footage. Maybe next time it could be more intense. We could have Roy-“

“There’s not going to be a next time,” Pam said giving her a hard look. “I don’t want to be apart of something like that again.”

“Pam, it’s apart of the whole thing,” Jen started to explain. “We have to have you and Roy argue or else we have no drama. No tension. It becomes…lifeless.”

“Well, I can stand it being lifeless,” Pam informed her.

“I assure you, any audience won’t,” Jen shot back, her voice rising.

“Look, Roy’s a good guy,” Pam couldn’t believe she just defended Roy, “and he just got a little carried away but it isn’t fair to him to be treated as if he’s some lout. And it’s not fair to me to be on the receiving end of his aggression and it’s definitely not fair to Jim, who has no idea what went on out here. And it’s not fair to your audience members not to have a real story. Do you think they are dumb enough not to understand what is real and what is contrived by some producer?”

“Do you think they care whether it’s real or not?” Jen snapped back. She obviously wasn’t used to being talked back to. “No one gives a damn about your perfect, boring little life, Pam. That’s not a relationship anyone wants to see. People want longing and angst and yes, sometimes a little physical tussle.”

“We’re not actors, these are real lives you’re dealing with,” Pam gave back. “You can’t treat us like we’re in some play.”

“But you are, Pam,” Jen reminded her. “What do you think that little contract was all about it?”

“That was pretty much blackmail,” Pam argued back. “You forced us to do that.”

“You always have a choice, Pam,” Jen told her.

Pam was so angry she didn’t know what to say. “He’s not touching me again,” she finally said firmly and she stormed off, leaving Jen alone in the parking lot.

Once Pam went inside she felt so much better. All the happy families having dinner, her coworkers mildly amused by Michael’s bad jokes, everything about the restaurant made her feel comfortable again.

And then there was Jim, sitting alone, eating an appetizer and sipping on a full mug of beer. Ryan was now sitting in one of the back booths. She joined him at once. He was surprised but he didn’t need to be. She always belonged with him. She planned on forgetting the incident in the parking lot and told herself that she would enjoy the rest of the night. She grabbed Jim’s mug of beer and began chugging down.

8:03pm  
Pam was working on her second margarita. She had already drunk a few beers, and a sour drink that Stanley’s wife had given her, and even though she didn’t realize it, she was completely wasted. She didn’t care; it made the award show so much better. Even Michael’s jokes seemed ten times funnier under the influence of alcohol.

He had given Angela the Tight Ass Award. She had laughed hard at that, nearly chocking on her dinner. Jim had to pat her back just to make sure she was okay. She noticed Jim watching her carefully, torn between being amused by her antics and being concerned. But having a few beers himself, he let her enjoy herself without question.

Currently, Michael was giving the Sexiest in the Office Award to Ryan, which made her burst out in a fit of giggles. Just watching her, Jim couldn’t contain himself either and let out a loud laugh brought on more by her silly, drunken antics then Michael’s awards show. As Ryan, embarrassed as all get out, went up to accept his award, Pam crooked her finger at Jim so he would come closer.

“I have a secret,” she tried to whisper but it was loud enough that Stanley, who was sitting behind them, could hear. “I think Michael has a crush on Ryan.” She hiccupped on the last word and began laughing again.

Jim grinned. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you this drunk before,” he commented.

“Is that bad?” she asked as she swayed on her seat. She went a little too far to her right and Jim caught her arm before she fell off the chair.

“It’s definitely interesting,” he remarked. She went back to sipping her margarita, giggling as she did so.

Another moment passed and she looked up at him, grinning broadly. He gave her that typical half-smile and she couldn’t help but think he was the most gorgeous man she had ever seen. Her eyes trailed down to his hands. She remembered those hands on her that morning and wondered if she could get him to sneak out to the bathroom so she could feel those hands on her again.

She waved him closer. “I have another secret,” she said, this time more audible. She placed her hand on his, pulled it down under the table and rested it on her thigh.

His eyes widened and he looked around, a little unsure of what she was about to say. “Okay…”

She glanced around with a mischievous smile. She playfully pulled on his tie a moment before brining his face close to hers. “I think you should have won Sexiest in the Office,” she whispered in a drunken, sultry voice.

“Pam!” he exclaimed, his face turning crimson. He withdrew his hand quickly and tilted his head towards the cameras to remind her that they were there and she needed to tone it down, if possible.

“I do not care,” she said loudly, swaying in her seat, her words completely slurred. “I think we should go to the bathroom.”

Jim looked at her confused. “Are you going to be sick?” he asked immediately standing up.

Pam began to laugh hysterically, slapping her hand against the table and shaking her head. “No, no, no, no, no, you don’t get it.”

“Get what?”

“I think we should…” her voice trailed off as she wildly pointed behind her. Jim waited for the end of the sentence but it never came. She tried to get his attention under the table, raising a foot in an attempt to graze his leg but she couldn’t control herself that well and ended up kicking him in the shin.

“Ow,” he let out. “What was that for?”

“I don’t know!” she cried, going into another fit of laughter. She stared down at her glass and noticed the margarita was half empty. “I think I need another drink,” she exclaimed.

9:31pm  
Pam sat at the bar, on the stool closest to the bathrooms, twirling her Dundie on the counter. She rested her head on her arm as she did so, finally beginning to feel her buzz wear off. She could her the music Michael was playing in the background and hummed along with it as she admired how the Dundie sparkled gold under the restaurant lights.

Across the restaurant, she saw the guys that had thrown food at Michael and she scowled at them. It was one thing for her to make fun of her boss but she didn’t like it when other people did. It had been a good Dundie Awards and she didn’t like them ruining the fun. She contemplated getting up and giving them a piece of her mind but her head felt heavy so she remained where she sat.

“The Whitest Sneakers Award,” she said to herself as she read the engraving on the statue. She smiled, proud that she had the award. She glanced down at her feet and moved her foot out to take a look at her shoes. There was a dark smudge on the right one, which made her giggle a little but she didn’t care, she wasn’t going to tell anyone. Michael couldn’t make her give the Dundie back.

Jim came out of the bathroom to take a seat next to her. Even though she said she didn’t have to go when he asked, he still wanted her to come with him and sat her down at the bar. “How are you feeling?” he asked.

“I feel pretty goooood,” she responded, looking lovingly at him. He had been watching out for her all night and she loved that.

“You don’t feel sick yet?”

She shook her head. “I think I need some water. Water!” she yelled out to the bartender. But the bartender was busy with other customers.

“We’ll get you some water when we get back to the table,” he assured her.

“Look,” she said pounding the Dundie on the counter. “I won an award. Because I have pretty white shoes.” She held her foot out again, nearly tripping a waiter that she didn’t even notice. “And this means, no more Boring Couple Award. We are not boring,” she announced grandly throwing her hands up.

“You know, I have a confession,” Jim said grinning broadly.

“What’s that?” she asked, her eyes widening with great interest.

“I never thought we were boring.”

“Me neither!” she responded as if it were some great revelation. “I don’t care what those people say. You and I are pretty awesome. Pretty awesome. They are the boring ones.”

Jim laughed. “Oh, I love you,” he said admiringly.

“You’re just saying that because I’m being entertaining,” she informed him with a giggle.

“That is true, you are being entertaining,” He said, reaching out to brush her bangs off her forehead. “But I think I’d love you even if you weren’t.”

She smiled and blushed a little. If she hadn’t been so inebriated, she would have returned the compliment. Instead, she looked around for the cameras and when she saw they were busy elsewhere, she slipped off the stool and threw her arms around him to give him a giant hug. He put his arms around her waist to hold her and pulled her close. She took in a deep breath, enjoying his scent. “You smell pretty,” she said after a moment.

He laughed against her hair. “You smell like alcohol,” he returned.

She pulled away to give him a playful glare. She saw her Dundie again and her eyes grew wide. “You do not have an award yet,” she exclaimed.

He shook his head. “Nope,” he said. “But I don’t think Michael’s done just yet.”

“I’m going to tell him to give you an award,” she said pounding her hand on the counter. “Michael!” Pam yelled, waving her hand wildly to get his attention. “Michael, Jim hasn’t gotten an award yet!” Michael was too busy singing to pay her any attention.

Jim brought her hand down and gently brought her back to the stool. “Don’t worry about it,” he consoled.

Pam’s display caught the attention of the cameraman and in a few seconds, he brought the camera over to them. “So, you guys have any thing you want to say to the camera?” the cameraman asked.

Pam smiled brightly and Jim grinned back at her. “What a great year for the Dundies…” he began. Pam sat giggling beside him.

10:15pm  
Pam was holding Jim’s hand. She clung to his arm because at this point, she could barely walk straight. As the Dundie Awards had wound down, Pam managed to finish off another margarita and was beginning to feel buzzed again but the sharp pain in her side worried her. She was too happy to care. This had been the best Dundie Awards she had ever been to and she made sure to let everyone know, including screaming it into the camera.

As they made their way outside, Pam proceeded to hug every one of her coworkers. She had never felt that close to any of them as she had that night and maybe it was because she was dead drunk but she loved them all. Everyone got a hug: Stanley, Phyllis, and Meredith. Kelly and Creed. She even gave Ryan a hug, who looked at her confused and Dwight, who didn’t quite know how to respond. Everyone was amused by her, especially Michael, who seemed somewhat proud that she was enjoying herself. She made it a special point to tell him how much her award meant to her.

Pam held her award lovingly in her free hand. She was so proud of it and when she got home, she was going to display it somewhere. Jim had gotten one too and she told him they would look good displayed next to each other. She jokingly told him that they should put the two statues on their wedding cake. Jim had laughed and told her that they might be too big for that.

Jim was helping her towards the car when Jen and a Chili’s manager came up to them. “Jim, can we talk with you a moment?” Jen asked, giving a dark look at Pam.

Pam glared at her. The anger she had tried so hard to keep down all evening rose when she saw the woman and she held on to Jim possessively. “I’m not going anywhere,” she protested.

“Angela is driving people home,” Jen informed her. “I think it would be best if Pam got a ride. We need to…talk with you privately.”

Jim looked resigned. “Pam, are you alright going with Angela?” he asked.

Pam shook her head. “I want to stay with you,” she said annoyed that they would even suggest her going home with Angela.

“Pam, I think…” Jim started but Pam cut him off by pulling him down for a kiss. Jim was completely caught off guard by her actions, which made Pam kiss him harder. He kissed her back ever so slightly before pulling away. If it hadn’t been dark out she would have seen him blush.

“I’m staying with you.” It was a statement this time.

Jen rolled her eyes. “Angela is bringing her car around. We already asked her to take you.”

Pam didn’t like that Jen was once again ruining her night. “You can’t tell me what to do.” A sharp pain hit her stomach and she doubled over. Jim caught her.

“Pam, I think we need to get you home,” he informed her. “Angela’s gonna give you a ride while I see what’s going on, alright?”

“She’s evil,” Pam muttered.

“Who, Angela?” Jim asked, confused. Pam shook her head.

“I think she’s talking about me,” Jen told him. “Come on, Jim, the manager has something he needs to talk to you about. I do as well.”

“I want to make sure she gets on her way,” Jim said definitely. Pam looked at him proudly. “When Angela comes, then I’ll follow you.”

Jen frowned but leaned over to the Chili’s manger to let him know it would be a few minutes. Meanwhile, Jim took Pam over to a bench on the side of the parking lot.

“What a night,” Jim commented.

Pam rested her head on his shoulder. “I liked it,” she said. She stared at her Dundie and the one Jim had in his hand. “Hey, Jim,” she said softly. “I’m glad I’m marrying you.”

Jim smiled and placed a kiss on the top of her head. “Me, too,” he replied.

10:37pm  
“Pam!” Pam heard his voice and was grateful he was finally home. She was currently sitting on the cold tile floor, her hands clutched tightly on the rim of the toilet seat. She had already thrown up twice and could feel the queasiness in her stomach begin to stir again. “Pam, where are you?” She didn’t respond, feeling so nauseous that she felt if she spoke nothing but bodily fluids would come out. She could hear footsteps coming closer, at a brisk pace. He was probably worried that something had happened to her. “Hey, are you okay?” he asked when he finally entered the bathroom.

She shook her head but didn’t speak. Instead, she positioned herself, ready as her stomach twisted, preparing to get the toxins out of her system. Jim was quick to her side, holding her hair back as the rest of her dinner came up. When she was finished, he grabbed some toilet paper so she could wipe her face. Her face was flushed, her chin covered in drool, her brow dripped with sweat and she felt worse than she had in a long time but she took the toilet paper willingly, grateful that Jim would still be there at her lows. “Thank you,” she said, cleaning herself up and throwing the toilet paper in before flushing the toilet.

“It’s what I’m here for,” he said simply. “Do want a hair tie?” She nodded and attempted to get up but Jim stopped her and searched the counter for one. “Where are they?”

Pam let out a tiny groan. “In a box,” her words were slurred and despite getting most of the alcohol out, she was still a bit drunk.

There were at least four boxes crammed into the bathroom and none of them were labeled with any more description than ‘bathroom.’ He opened the first box, which happened to be a mess of toiletries but nothing that resembled a hair tie. Instead of searching the remaining boxes, Jim picked up one of his old sneakers and began to unlace it. “We’ll just use a substitute,” he said as he pulled the string out of the loops. A moment later, he brushed her hair out of her face and pulled it back, tying the shoelace in her hair, making sure to create a bow. “See, works just fine,” he said sitting back against the bathtub.

She curled up beside him and he put one arm around her shoulders to pull her close. Her stomach still churned a little but she was feeling much better. “Mmmm…I like you,” she cooed nuzzling her head against his shoulders.

“I know,” he grinned and gave her a kiss on the top of her head. “I try to take advantage of that as often as possible.”

She looked up at him. “I think I threw up in Angela’s car,” she informed him. “I don’t think Angela was happy.”

“No, she wouldn’t be,” he let out a laugh.

“How come it took you so long to come home?” she asked.

He hesitated. “I had to take care of a few things.”

“Like what?” she began to lazily play with the top button of his shirt.

“Do you realize you’re banned from Chili’s? ”

Her face contorted to annoyance. “I didn’t have that many drinks,” she protested.

“You had four margaritas,” Jim explained amused. “And most of my beer. But that’s not the point. The Chili’s manager asked me if I had your driver’s license so they could get a copy of it. Apparently, you completely broke the strict policy on over serving alcohol by stealing other people’s drinks and now have lifetime ban. They thought you were being disruptive. I don’t know why, personally I found you quite entertaining. ”

“Whatever,” she scoffed. “I’ll go back there. I’ll go back and I’ll…” she couldn’t manage to come up with a good ending to that sentence.

“Yeah, no, I think your Chili’s days are over,” Jim teased.

“Well that’s just stupid.”

“Jen stopped to talk to me as well.” His tone of voice was now back to serious and even in a drunken haze, Pam knew it wouldn’t be good. “She didn’t like that you kissed me in front of the cameras. Both times, actually, but it was the one after you won your award that made her the most upset. She said it was too early to show any signs of affection. We’re getting a warning now, mostly because you were being a cute drunk, but if we try something like that again, we’re going to get fined for breaking the contract.”

“To the hell with them,” Pam shouted unexpectedly. “They can’t tell me when to kiss my fiancé. I can kiss you whenever I want,” she poked him in the chest to emphasize her point but then gave him a mischievous grin. “I know how to seduce you,” she said in her most sensual voice, leaning up in an attempt to kiss him. She missed and got his chin instead.

He chuckled at her effort but pulled away before she could try again. “There’s no doubt you can and as much as I find you sexy when you smell like booze and vomit, I think you should try another day.”

Disappointed, she slumped back against him and he gave her an affectionate kiss on the temple. “It was a good Dundies,” she offered after a moment of silence.

“It was a good Dundies,” he agreed, rubbing his hand gently over her arm.

“Even if the stupid cameras where there,” she added.

“Despite the stupid cameras,” he repeated.

“We should put the trophies on display in here,” she informed him. “Right above the toilet as a reminder.”

Jim laughed. “I’ll build a little shelf. Three Most Boring Couple Awards, a Whitest Sneakers Award, and a Jim Halpert award. Our future kids will be so proud.”

“And maybe next year you’ll get the Whitest Sneakers Award and I’ll get the Jim Halpert Award,” Pam explained. The minute it was out of her mouth she giggled at the nonsensical statement.

“Yeah, I’m not letting you drink next year,” Jim informed her.

“I blame you. You promised the docu- the doc-,” she couldn’t get the words out. “The stupid camera people and producers and those people. You promised they wouldn’t be a problem and here they are invading our lives again. I want them to leave.”

“I’m sorry,” Jim said giving her a hug. “I honestly didn’t think they would be. I honestly didn’t even think they’d come back to do more filming. If you want, I’ll take them all out for you.”

She let out a sigh. “Is it going to be alright? Are we going to be able to do this?”

Jim gave her a warm smile. “We made it through the first day, didn’t we? Only two-hundred thirty-five more to go.”

Pam groaned. “Hey, Jim, one more thing.”

“Yeah?”

“Don’t ever let me have a margarita again.”


	2. Chapter 2

Day 8  
“Well, he seemed like a nice enough young man,” Pam’s mother told her just moments after Roy left the parking lot.

“Yeah, he’s alright,” Pam said nonchalantly, shuffling her feet. Roy had been a good enough sport about the whole thing, even if he had complained about having to actually dress up and meet her mother but the fact that the producers wanted to drag Mrs. Beesly into the mess in the first place was more annoying than anything else they had asked her to do up to that point. “It could have been a lot worse,” she gave with a shrug.

Mrs. Beesly shook her head. “True, he seemed a little…well…honey, I’m just glad you’re with Jim.”

“Me too,” Pam agreed with a smile. “Oh, and ‘which one’s Jim’, Mom? Come on don’t you think that was laying it on rather think?”

“Well, I don’t know,” her mother said perplexed. “I’m not an actress, I did the best I could.” Pam gave her that. “When’s my future son-in-law coming to join us anyway, at the restaurant?”

“He’ll be down in a little bit,” Pam explained. “We’re not breaking contract when the cameras aren’t around but we try to avoid leaving work together these days.”

Mrs. Beesly gave a dissatisfied look. “I don’t know if I like this set-up, honey. All of this pretending? I hope it’s not some sort of scam.”

“It’s fine mom,” Pam assured her though some days she felt like she was the butt of a very bad joke. “They’re just very picky about their rules. The documentary crew has been checked out but our corporate branch. And, like I told you on the phone, they’re paying us a decent amount to keep it up so, yeah…”

Pam’s mom still wasn’t convinced. “Well, if you said it’s alright. So, what are we doing tonight? Are we going over any wedding plans? Did you guys pick a date yet?” her mother was wonderfully excited about the wedding and Pam felt relieved that her mother was so on board.

“No, but we can talk about that at dinner,” Pam answered.

Just then, Jim came out of the building. He grinned when he saw the two women standing there and didn’t hesitate to give Mrs. Beesly a large hug. “Hey, Laura,” he said warmly.

“Oh, Jim,” Mrs. Beesly answered affectionately. “I’m so sorry I couldn’t say hello to you upstairs.”

“That’s alright,” he assured her.

Pam gave him worried look. “Cameras didn’t follow you, did they?”

“No,” Jim answered with a smirk. “They’re too busy being entertained by Todd Packer and the blow-up doll.”

Pam and Mrs. Beesly both gave him odd looks. “What is it with that blow-up doll?” Mrs. Beesly asked shaking her head. “Anyway, where do you two want to go? Chili’s?”

Jim grinned as Pam gave him a wide-eyed look. “Um, you know what, I think maybe Olive Garden would be better,” Jim suggested.

Day 15  
Jim placed the silver yogurt lid that hung off paper clips around the rear view mirror and smiled as it glittered in the sunlight. The bronze lid he had won was around the lamp on his work desk and the gold one, the one Pam had given him just for being him, was going to hang around his Dundie that was currently located on a shelf over the toilet. He hadn’t had a day this good since he started working at Dunder-Mifflin and secretly hoped Michael and Dwight would find more things to do that required them to leave the office.

As he adjusted the paper clips, he noticed the two cameramen coming out of the building all packed up for the day. This meant he could leave without fear of being caught though he and Pam were almost beginning to enjoy the secret little game. He put his car in drive and pulled out of the parking lot.

Pam was waiting a few blocks down at a bus stop. He pulled to the curb and she slipped in the car. “No tail today,” he said with a grin before pulling her in for a quick kiss.

“Really?” She said surprised. “Maybe they found someone more interesting to follow, wouldn’t that be a relief.”

“I doubt it,” Jim said as he pulled the car away from the curb. “They looked like they were headed home. And, I don’t know, I think all this sneaking around has been kind of fun.”

Pam grinned. “We have got to be more careful, we were almost caught in the elevator a couple of days ago.”

Jim shrugged. “Do you want to stop?”

“No,” Pam replied simply.

“Alright, then more careful it is.”

Pam reached out her hand to play with the silver yogurt lid. “Today turned out really well,” she said fondly. “That was so much fun.”

“It was so much fun,” Jim agreed. “We should make it an annual thing. Now all we have to do is get Michael to buy a condo every year and we’re all set.”

Pam let out a laugh. “So, did Jen come up to talk to you about anything today?”

“No,” Jim replied slowly. “Did she to you?”

“Nope.”

“One day without notes from the producer?” Jim asked a little shocked since nearly every day they were both dragged into the conference room to receive endless pages of notes on what they could do better. At least they hadn’t been reprimanded since the first day when they were threatened with a fine. “Awesome Beesly. We must be getting better at this.”

“Yeah, it’s not so bad, is it?” Pam commented. “Maybe we’re just getting used to the cameras there.”

“Probably.”

“Oh, that reminds me, do you know what Pam Pong is?” Pam asked.

Jim smiled. “No, but it sounds like a game I want to play.”

Pam playfully rolled her eyes. “You already are. Apparently Angela has been keeping a tally of how many times you come up to reception to talk to me.”

Jim’s eyebrows rose. “What? Why would she do that?”

Pam shook her head. “I have no idea, maybe Jen wanted her to.”

“How would that even work, she sits with her back to us.”

“I have no idea.”

Day22  
“No.”

“No?”

“No.” Pam took a sip of her morning coffee as she leaned against the vending machine.

Jim stared at her amused. “Why not.”

Pam looked back perplexed unable to articulate her reasoning. “Well, I just- I don’t- She seems like a nice girl, but I-”

“She is a nice girl,” Jim responded.

“I just don’t want you to have lunch with her,” Pam explained.

Jim tilted his head. “You know you would be there too, right?”

“And why is she calling you anyway?” Pam continued. Back in March, when the camera crew came the first time, Katy Moore, an actress, had been hired for one day to come in and shake up the office. That morning, Jen, the documentary producer, decided it would be great if Jim pretended to ask her out. To balance things out since Pam had Roy, Jen had explained. Pam was never on board with the idea then and she didn’t care for the idea now. “I mean, did you guys get close and I just didn’t know about it?”

Jim shook his head. “Yeah, in a matter of one day, I decided to ditch my entire relationship with you and go run off with her.”

“Jim!” she swatted at his arm. His sarcasm wasn’t making her feel any better.

“Jen found out she was back in town for week and asked her to come by,” Jim confessed. “There’s nothing to worry about. It’s just lunch and then she’s on a plane back to New York to be in some play.”

“Oh, only one day,” Pam tapped her mug nervously. “Ok, that’s fine I guess.”

Jim’s eyes narrowed. “You know, you are the one with the fake fiancé. If anything, I should be the one having the problem.”

“Well, that’s different,” Pam shot back.

“How? Roy gets to pretend all the time that you’re dating?”

“No,” Pam responded quickly. “Roy isn’t- You’re so much more-“ She stopped, feeling her face flush a little as she tried to recollect her thought. “Katy’s a professional actress and I’m just-“

“Incredibly cute when irrationally jealous,” Jim finished for her, reaching out a hand and softly caressing his thumb over her cheek. “It’s you and me Beesly, that’s not changing any time soon.”

“Alright,” she said giving him a half-smile much more relieved then she had been a few minutes earlier.

“Come on, let’s get back to work,” Jim said looking behind his shoulder. “Camera crew will be poking around here soon if we don’t.”

Unfortunately, they didn’t get much work done because five minutes later the fire alarm went off.

Day 29  
Jim stood at the vending machine gazing over his choices of chips and candy bars. As he debated, he bounced the quarters in his hand up and down.

“Hey,” it was Pam who said his name. She had come in behind him and gently brushed her hand against his as she came around to face him. He couldn’t help but smile at how adorable she looked dressed in the black cat costume. Her brow, however, was wrinkled with worry. “I, um, really meant what I said when I suggested you take the job,” she said hesitantly.

“I know,” he replied giving the quarters another bounce.

“Well, I just think it would be a great opportunity for you,” she continued. She crossed her arms and stared at the floor. “For…both of us.”

“Do you really want to move to Maryland?” he asked. He had been taken aback by the suggestion when she first mentioned taking the job at Cumberland Mills and was surprised now that she was adamant on discussing the subject. But he could tell how serious she was and did not take that lightly. “I mean, I guess the job is better, but do you want to move that far from your parents? If you’re really serious about it, why don’t we sit down tonight and talk it through.”

She gave him a lop-sided smile. “I just think we should get out of here. I mean, it’s a ticket out of this documentary and maybe it wouldn’t be so bad leaving Scranton. And mom would love to come to come visit if we lived out there. Come on, we could get a new start on our life together out there. We could get a small little house on the coast so I could see the ocean. You could eat soft-shell crab all the time.”

She was making quite the compelling argument and he started to see a new life for them without people probing in their personal lives. A grin slowly stretched on his face. “Yeah, I think that would be pretty good.”

“Yeah?” He could see the excitement in her eyes.

“Yeah, let me talk to Jen about breaking the contract,” Jim answered.

Not five minutes later, the documentary crew pulled Jim in the conference room for their usual talking head session. Before Jen could get into her questions, Jim asked about taking the job. “So, Pam and I thought it would be a good step forward for my career,” Jim explained as Jen nodded, a blank look on her ace. “Is it possible to break our contract?”

Jen looked blindsided by the proposal. “Well, yes, Jim, you can break the contract any time you want.” Jim felt a bit relieved until he saw Jen break into a wicked grin. “However, I need to remind you that there is a ten-thousand dollar fee for breaking it.”

“What?” Jim’s jaw dropped, shocked.

Jen continued. “And I’m assuming that Pam would go with you, so that would be another ten-thousand dollars.”

“It would be twenty-thousand dollars to break the contract?” Jim asked in disbelief.

“Have to read the small print, Jimmy,” she said looking incredibly satisfied with herself. Jim slumped down in his chair. He hadn’t realized how much they had signed their rights away to this documentary. “Now, Jim, who do you think Michael is going to let go today?”

Day 43  
Pam’s feet hurt. It was well after eight and she was just then getting home from work. All she wanted to do was sit down, rest her feet and think about how she didn’t have to get up the next morning because it was Saturday.

Jim was already home. She could see the glow of the TV from the kitchen and heard muffled sounds, which sounded like a basketball game. She smelled pizza and she knew he probably got Italian sausage. She never liked Italian sausage so Jim would only get it when he knew she wouldn’t be home for dinner. Her stomach growled anyway, having only had a bag of chips all afternoon.

She dropped her purse on the kitchen counter, unzipped her coat and placed it on the back of one of the dining room chairs before entering the living room. Jim was sitting on the couch, already changed into casual clothes, sipping a beer. The half eaten pizza lay open in front of him. He didn’t look up at her as she came beside him. She waited half a moment for a response but when he remained stone-faced, she sat down beside him and curled her feet underneath her.

“Hey,” she said tugging on his shirtsleeve. He turned towards her with a frown on his face but he said nothing. She was too tired to deal with his bad mood. “Okay, what did I do?” she asked plainly.

He returned his attention back to the basketball game. “I don’t know. You’re the one mad at me.”

Pam looked at him confused for a moment. Then it hit her. “Is this about the dojo?” He shrugged and took another sip of the beer. She let out a sigh. “Jim, that was- The cameras were right there and we really can’t afford to get a fine for breaking the contract.”

“You didn’t talk to me all afternoon,” Jim pointed out, his eyes fixated on the TV screen.

Pam reached out for a piece of pizza and began picking the sausage off. “God, Jim, I was just so pissed that those cameras were there. And then they kept encouraging Michael and Dwight to keep poking at each other. I mean yeah, it was funny at first, but when we had actually get work done and Michael was too busy promoting Dwight…”

“Dwight got a promotion?” Jim asked in disbelief.

Pam rolled her eyes. “I think so. Just what Dwight needs. More Power.” She took a bite of the pizza. “I’m not entirely sure what happened in that conference room while the rest of us were forging signatures but Dwight came out claiming he was now Assistant Regional Manager.”

“Damn,” Jim replied.

“Yeah,” Pam said as she chewed another piece. She could still taste the sausage and it made her gag a little. “Anyway, I just had a really rough day. It was stressful, it was frustrating and I’m sorry if I took it out on you.” She rested her head on his shoulder. He raised his arm and put it around her shoulders, pulling her closer. They said nothing for a moment as they watched the players on the screen run back and forth across the court.

“Hey, Pam,” Jim finally said in a soft voice. “Just let me in on it next time, alright?”

Pam grabbed his beer from him and gave a small smile. “Alright,” she said before taking a long sip.

Day 50  
The documentary crew had left to get dinner for the evening, leaving Pam and Jim alone of the rooftop. They had finished their own dinner of grilled cheese, vending machine chips, and soda only moments ago. The crew had asked if they wanted to come down but since alone time was rare for them at work, they declined.

“So, what did you mean, ‘you don’t remember the last time someone had made you dinner’,” Jim asked as he crumpled his napkin up and placed it on his plate. “I made you dinner last night.”

Pam grinned and downed the last of her soda. “You ordered take-out. That isn’t making me dinner.”

“I make you dinner all the time,” Jim retorted.

“I know,” Pam admitted. “But that doesn’t make great television.”

They were beginning to get good at knowing what the producers wanted. Jen barely had notes for them any longer and they played it up in front of the cameras as often as possible.

But tonight, Jim was grateful that Michael was late and that the crew had given them some peace. He studied Pam, watching her face glow in the light of the single candle, watching the soft breeze rustle through her hair, watching her gentle smile as she gazed down at Dwight and Kevin play with the fireworks down below. It was a beautiful night and he couldn’t think of a more romantic way to spend it with his fiancée.

“Hey, did they talk to you about first dates?” Pam asked turning her attention back to him.

He pulled himself out of his daze. “What? Oh, yeah, first dates. Um, yeah. So, that hockey thing, was that real?”

Pam nodded. “Yeah, it happened back in high school. Believe me, not fun.”

“I never knew that,” Jim stated, perplexed that there was still things he didn’t know about her. “I mean, I know you told me never to take you to a hockey game, but still.”

She shrugged. “So, what did you tell them?” she asked curiously.

He gave her a smirk. “I told them about this one girl who I took to Cajino’s a few years ago. I mean, the girl was alright, pretty, nothing special but the waitress spilled soda on me and I got a flat tire so the date kinda sucked.”

She immediately swatted him in the arm. “You said our first date was the worst one?”

“Well, I added that you were engaged and all that stuff they wanted to hear,” he added.

She playfully rolled her eyes at him. “I can’t believe you said that. You got lucky that night, you should have been bragging about that night.”

“Eh, it wasn’t that great,” he joked.

“You are so not getting any tonight,” she teased back.

He laughed. “So what do you think is taking Michael and Jan so long? I realize this client is important, but if they don’t get the sale it’s not like they don’t have the documentary benefactor to keep the company afloat.”

Pam shook her head. “Yeah, Dunder-Mifflin might as well go out of business and we could all become reality stars. But still…” Pam sat back in her chair thinking hard about something. “Do you think Michael and Jan hooked up?”

“Ew, that’s gross,” Jim responded.

“I don’t know maybe,” Pam said with a smile, which turned into a giggle. “Or maybe Michael is reading all of his screenplays to them”

“Well, now that I could believe.” They both began to laugh at the thought when a car pulled into the parking lot.

“Is that them?” Pam asked leaning over to see the car park.

“No,” Jim responded disappointed. “Just the documentary crew. Move over like ten feet, we can’t be seen together, remember?” She stuck her tongue out at him.

Day 57  
Pam was sitting alone in the break room, sipping a soda, waiting for Jim to be done with his performance review. She took her break ten minutes in to his review, thinking he would fill her in on what was going on with Michael afterward. Jim’s meeting with Michael didn’t take very long and not a moment after she sat at the far table, Jim came in looking quite pleased with himself.

“That went well,” he said the second he walked in, a grin plastered on his face. He looked around for cameras, like they were both accustomed to doing these days, before continuing. “He’s so caught up about Jan, he started asking me for advice on how to keep women. I don’t think we talked once about my actual job performance.”

“Oh, I know,” Pam agreed, watching him as he got his own soda from the vending machine. “He had me analyzing her voice message. ‘What about this pause, Pam, what does that mean?’” She imitated in her best Michael voice. “’Do you think she loves me?’”

“What did you tell him?” Jim asked as he took a seat next to her and clicked open the soda.

“What he wanted to hear,” Pam explained playing with her soda can. “It seemed like the simplest solution but I don’t think she sounded too happy.”

“Did you see the look on her face?” Jim asked. “She was not thrilled to be here to give Michael his review.”

“At least the documentary crew is getting a kick out of it,” Pam commented. She looked around again for any signs of the cameras but they weren’t there. The only sound she could here was the slow typing coming from Toby’s computer. “It’s nice, isn’t it, for them to be focused on something else for a change? Though, maybe Jen paid Jan to make-out with Michael so she could have another story.” She let out a laugh at the thought.

“I wouldn’t put it past them, though Jan could possibly be that desperate,” Jim said as he nursed his soda. “So, they asked me about office relationships again. I mean, what do they want me to say? I can’t exactly say the truth because that would result in some ridiculous fine. Can’t exactly lie ‘cause they want something interesting for their documentary. I can’t understand why they don’t edit around our relationship. I’m sure it’s possible.”

“What did you tell them?” Pam asked curiously.

Jim shrugged his shoulders. “I told them to talk to you since you are in an office relationship. You know, technically.”

“Oh great,” Pam replied sarcastically. “I hope they do ask me about it. I’ll tell them I love sitting ten feet away from the guy I’m banging it just sucks that I can’t talk to him about it.”

“That was lovely, Pam,” Jim joked. “Really, eloquently stated.”

“Thank you,” Pam said with false modesty.

“Well, you know they’ll be right back to us tomorrow. This Jan thing isn’t going to last long.”

“You mean Monday?” Pam corrected with a giggle.

“What?” Jim looked at her confused.

“Tomorrow’s Saturday, Jim, get it right.”

Day 64  
Jim shoved the remaining frame, a picture of he and Pam at Lake Scranton the previous summer, into his sock drawer and proceeded to dust off the remaining items with a cloth. He couldn’t remember the last time he saw the top of the dresser, possibly when they first moved in.

A few minutes later, Pam entered the room, impressed by the look of it. “Wow,” she commented, her eyes growing wide as she scanned the room. “You can’t even tell I live here.”

“I know,” Jim replied with a wild grin. He had spent the better part of last night and when they returned home from work that day getting rid of any trace that Pam might live there. The work party they were throwing was his idea but documentary crew insisted that they be invited therefore they had to de-Pam the entire place. Every closet and cupboard was now filled with Pam’s things. “I think I’m finished up in here.”

Pam began to walk around, examining every inch. “Oh, Jim,” she said when she looked at the back wall. “My guitar is out still.” She went to grab it but Jim held his hand out to stop her.

“It can stay there,” he insisted.

“You don’t even know how to play,” Pam shot back. He gave her a pretend hurt look and she let it slide. “Fine, but if anyone asks you better tell them you have it for appearances only.”

“Alright,” Jim said as he sat on the bed. He pulled Pam onto his lap. “Downstairs ready?”

“Yeah, I got out the karaoke machine,” she exclaimed excitedly. “That should be fun. The spare room is ready for when Mark gets here so he can put his stuff in it. Oh, and the food’s ready to go. I can’t believe you agreed to do this.”

“Come on, it’ll be fun,” he said softly pressing his lips to hers. “And we can always sneak away,” he added pulling her in for another kiss.

“Do we have time now?” Pam asked suggestively, wrapping her arms around his neck so she could give him a deeper kiss and he moaned in reply. He pulled her tighter so their bodies were touching and soon his hand was underneath her sweater as she worked the button on his jeans.

“Halpert!” a voice yelled from down stairs. They jolted apart, taking a moment to be amused by their state of disarray. “I don’t care what you guys are doing up there, I’m not waiting out in the cold any longer.”

“Mark,” Jim muttered as he reluctantly pushed Pam off his lap.

It only took a second to gather themselves before heading downstairs to where Jim’s old college roommate stood in the entryway. “Hey Man,” Jim greeted his friend. “Where’s Anna?”

“She’ll be here in a little bit, she got out of work late. Love what you’ve done with the place,” Mark teased as he glanced around the living room. “Looks so much like our dorm room sophomore year.”

“Yeah, we went crazy with the Christmas lights that year,” Jim remembered fondly.

“Can’t even tell you’re living with this girl,” Mark replied with a grin.

“Hey Mark,” Pam said sweetly as she gave him a hug. “You know, I should probably get going,” she said noticing the time. “I’ll see you in about an hour or so?”

Jim nodded. “Yeah, most everyone will be here by then.”

Mark looked at them confused. “You mean she can’t even be here when the cameras get here?”

Jim had explained thoroughly to him about the documentary situation but Mark still had a hard time believing any of it. “Yeah, can’t break the contract.”

Mark shook his head. “Contracts? Please tell me what they’re paying you is worth it.”

Jim shrugged.

Day 82  
Pam sat curled up on Jim’s lap, her head resting against his shoulder, and his arm around her holding her tight. They had just finished putting the lights on the tree and sat on the couch to admire it. The tree had been purchased a few days prior but remained untouched until that evening when they returned home from the office Christmas party. The general spirit of the holiday season inspired them to finally decorate it. An hour later, they sat watching the blinking green and red lights reflect on the bulbs and silver tinsel.

“We’re still going to your parents house for dinner tomorrow, right?” Pam asked. It was two days before Christmas and while it was the first one they would have living together, between their families, they wouldn’t be at home for the holidays.

“Yeah, my brothers won’t be in until later, so we can sleep in some,” Jim responded, giving her a small peck on top of her head. “A little alone time for us. When do we need to be at your parent’s place on Christmas? Do we need to leave early or do you want to stick around for my mother’s Christmas brunch?”

“We can stay. Mom and dad don’t like getting up early anyway,” she explained. Pam turned her head, noticing the half opened box that lay on the end table. She smiled when she saw the rounded, teal top to the teapot sticking out of it. “Thank you again for my present,” she said, giving him a tight hug. “I loved it.”

“I know,” Jim said with a grin. “I have a confession to make, though. Secret Santa was rigged this year.”

“Really?”

“It was Jen’s idea. I mean, I picked out the teapot because I knew you wanted it, but she told me to stuff it with inside jokes. Saying as she always does that it would make great television.”

“Oh my god, Jim,” She was sincerely touched and never would have believed that any of the documentary crew would go out of their way to suggest something nice happen between the two of them. Not when work was more miserable than ever with the crew around. “I can’t believe they’d be that considerate.”

“I know, I was shocked when they asked me to do it,” Jim admitted. “Though I about had a heart attack when Michael started switching gifts.”

“Do you think that was the Jen’s idea as well?”

“If it was, I didn’t know about it,” Jim replied. “But, I’d say fifty-fifty on that one. It could go either way. I can’t believe you almost took the iPod.” He teased shaking his head at her.

“Hey, it was an iPod,” she defended. “Whatever, you knew I was going to get the teapot back. Even if it meant having to deal with Dwight.”

“You do know he wanted to use that thing to clear his sinuses, right?” Jim informed her.

“Oh gross.”

Jim laughed. “Hey, let me go get something.” He slipped out from underneath her and headed to the bedroom. A few minutes later, he returned with a small package.

“Oh, a present to put under the tree,” Pam cooed.

“Actually, I was hoping you’d open it now,” Jim said as he sat down on the couch and pulled her back onto his lap.

“Are you sure?” Pam asked cautiously. “I don’t even have your present wrapped yet.”

“Yeah, I want you to see the real reason why I was worried about the gift exchange,” Jim answered.

Pam began to unwrap the present and smiled broadly when she saw what was underneath the paper. “Oh my god, Jim,” she said excitedly. It was a video iPod. “Thank you!”

“Merry Christmas, Pam.”

“Merry Christmas,” she replied, giving him a kiss.

Day 110  
Jim stood at the rail staring down at the water slowly slapping against the side of the boat. On the horizon, the sun was finally beginning to appear, the sky lightening after the dark night. He had been standing there, enjoying the peacefulness of the water, away from the insanity going on in the rest of the boat. It had been a very long night and he was glad that soon they would be docking on shore.

Who takes a cruise in January, anyway? He thought miserably to himself as he bundled his jacket tighter. He let out a sigh, his breath floating away in the cold air.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a figure approach. He knew it would be her. He had been out there for a while now and he figured she would be out to join him eventually. She stepped up beside him without a word, leaning on the railing to stair out at the water with him.

“So, I got rid of Katy,” Jim said finally, feeling guilty about the way he had treated the actress all night. He couldn’t help that he was feeling miserable but he was sorry that he had taken it out on her unexpectedly. “Jen wasn’t happy about that. She yelled at me for a long time,” he explained, “I just walked away and came out here.”

Pam nodded. “So, what’s really bothering you?”

There was no doubt that she knew him better than anyone else. “How did they know our wedding date? I mean it was hard enough just having to watch him hold you but to take that away-“ his voice trailed off. Up until that point, the idea of Roy hadn’t bothered him. He knew how Pam felt about the situation and never doubted it anything more then just an act. But there was something about watching them together that night, announcing something that should have been theirs, that made him feel ill. He hated to admit it but after all these months, the camera crew was finally beginning to get to him.

“I don’t know,” she responded calmly. “I was as surprised as you were. They didn’t tell me anything about what was going on tonight. I think Roy knew but- I don’t know.” She gave him a half smile instead of any answers.

“I’m not sure I can- I don’t know how much longer I can do this,” he admitted. “Downplaying our relationship is one thing but to have to pretend that you are getting married to someone else? It should have been me. That should have been our moment.” He felt selfish saying it but he didn’t care.

She reached out to grab his hand and when he turned towards her, he saw the hard look on her face. “I love you,” she said, her eyes staring deeply into his. “And what happened in there doesn’t matter because I love you.”

He gave her a grateful smile and squeezed her hand back. She was right and if anything, the camera crew being around just reminded him how lucky that he was with her and never had to face a reality where that wasn’t true. “I love you, too,” he whispered back.

Day 117  
Pam sat her desk and watched him type. Occasionally, he’d look over at some paper he had lying on the desk then diligently went back to typing. She wasn’t sure exactly what he was doing but there was always a moment in her day where she would stop and just admire the man she loved. When they first started dating, she would look up from her desk more frequently, smiling at how lucky she had gotten but these days she would have to make sure there wasn’t a cameraman lurking before she stole that private moment of hers. She was grateful that morning that the documentary crew had decided to come in late so she could partake in the ritual she was almost forced to give up.

As she watched him her mind wandered back to yesterday afternoon when she finally had decided to give the producer a piece of her mind. She was nervous when she approached Jen, the producer always wearing an intimidating face. She clasped her hands together and a part, anxiously waiting for the woman to be done talking with her crew. Jim had already left for the day and had no idea that she decided stay and talk with Jen. He still didn’t know and it was a secret she planned to keep.

“You need to back off,” Pam said seriously when she and Jen were finally alone in the conference room.

Jen looked at her confused. Never had Pam been the one to use such a demanding voice. “What?” the blonde woman asked probably wondering why Pam was even bothering.

“Tell the camera guys to back off,” Pam repeated.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Jen pretended. She didn’t care at all about Pam or Jim. She just wanted her documentary and Pam knew it.

“I don’t care if we’re under contract,” Pam continued. She was sweating because she was so nervous. Rarely had she ever stood up to anyone but this one was for Jim. “If you want to fine us, then do that. But you have got to give us a break.”

Jen gave her a devilish little smile. “Are you telling me a little bit of pressure is beginning to break the perfect relationship?” she mocked.

An anger rose in Pam that she rarely ever felt. “I’m saying that no one’s life should be under a microscope. Especially when none of it’s real.” She could still see that look on Jim’s face. The defeated look he had on the boat. She never wanted to see that look on his face again. “I don’t know how long you’re planning to drag this out, but it’s time to wrap it up.”

Jen scoffed. “You can’t threaten me. You have no leverage.”

Pam stared at her, giving her one of the darkest looks she had ever given anyone in her life. For a moment, it looked as though Jen would relent. It was true, Pam had no ground to stand on but after a moment, Jen broke away her gaze. “Fine,” she muttered as she left the room.

The door open and Pam came crashing back to the present. It was the camera crew and she was ready for them, afraid that they may make her life more miserable than before.

Looking back, she never knew if her words had actually gotten to Jen or if it was the fact that Michael burnt his foot and Dwight received a concussion, but for one day, the cameras seemed to be gave them some much needed space.

Day 124  
Jim sank a little lower in the chair. He hated these meetings. He always felt as if the principal was reprimanding him. The cameramen were there, as usual, but Jen was running behind, which was unlike her. When she finally arrived, she looked less put together than she usually did and Jim wondered if something had happened.

“Alright Jim,” she said trying frantically to regain some composure. She pushed her blond hair behind her ear and readjusted her glasses. “I think we may have a compromise for your situation.” Jim wasn’t sure if he liked the word compromise. She smiled smugly. “We’re going to let out your little secret.”

“What secret would that be?” Jim asked. “Oh, you mean the well kept non-secret that I live with and am engaged to the receptionist? Yeah, what are you going to do, retell everyone?”

Jen didn’t like his attitude and scowled at him. “You know, Jim, we’ve been very accommodating lately. I wouldn’t take that so lightly.”

They had been oddly less intrusive lately but that didn’t mean he wanted light shined upon he and Pam again. “Well,” he finally said with a sigh. “How is this going to work? Does it mean that Pam and I can finally show our relationship?”

“Not exactly,” Jen replied. “Pam’s just going to find out you like her. We’ll see where it goes from there.”

“So, I’m just going to tell her I like her,” Jim said. “And she’s not going to have any reaction? This doesn’t make any sense.”

“No, we’re going to have Michael do it.”

“Michael! I don’t think that’s such…”

“And when Pam finds out, you’ll deny it.”

“Deny what?”

“Deny that you like her.”

The stupidity of the idea was beginning to give him a headache. “And you think this is going to work? Be interesting? I just don’t see it.”

“Just leave that to us,” Jen assured him. Her features softened, which was unusual for her. “Look, I realize this has been rough on you so the documentary benefactor has offered a little incentive. Keep all this up and we’ll give you a paid vacation.”

Jim sat a little higher in his chair. He couldn’t begin to explain how much he would love to take a vacation with Pam right now. But he worried that he might have to sell his soul to the devil. “Can I talk to Pam about this first?”

Jen smiled.

Day 131  
When Jim got to his car that evening he realized he had left his cell phone on the seat. He grabbed the phone as he climbed in and noticed he had missed some calls. Before taking off, he called his voice mail to listen.

“Hey, it’s me. You must have left your phone in your car again because you’re not answering. I really was hoping you’d answer I miss having you up here to talk to. I would call the phone back in the annex but the cameras have been on me all day and I’m sure you’re busy anyway. Did you eat lunch alone? You could have joined us. Michael’s coming gotta go.”

Beep

“Hey, it’s me again. I’m taking off. I left, like, fifty messages on your work phone because I was bored, so I’m sure you’ll have fun listening to those if Michael ever gives you back your desk. Jim, seriously, he was so bad today. He made such a mess of everyone’s desk and annoyed the hell out of everyone. Do you know who did that to his carpet? I’m starting to suspect it was the documentary crew because they’re evil! Do you know what’s going on with Kelly and Ryan? They were looking at each other funny. Just…ew. Oh, crap, I gotta go. I shouldn’t be talking and driving.”

Beep

“Hey, I’m bored. I’ve been home for about an hour now and did you know there’s nothing on TV at this time of day? Maybe I’ll transfer those pictures from our vacation onto the computer. Oh, I’m totally going to use that picture of you buried in snow as the desktop on the computer…that day still makes me laugh. I think we should go back next year. How many trips do you think we can get out of the documentary people? Next time I want to go somewhere warmer than the Poconos. We need to talk about that when you get home.”

Beep

“I found some pictures from that third night. I’m shocked they came out but here they are on the computer. And just…wow. That was an amazing night Jim. I wish you were here now. I want to make love to you like we did that night. I want to-“

Beep

“Jim, it’s your mother. I just tried to call your house but you and Pam must still be at work. Anyway, your Great Aunt Katherine has decided she wants to come to the wedding. Please make sure you include her in your count. I’ll talk to you later sweetie. Bye.”

Beep

“Oh my god, Jim, your mother just called here. I guess I should tell you that I was planning to surprise you with dinner and…a little dessert. So I was cooking, and well, I guess I should be honest, I’m not wearing much, then your mom called while I was leaving you that last message and, well, I nearly scalded myself with boiling water. So, I had to clean up the mess and that’s a mood killer. You know Jim, I love your mom but sometimes she bugs the hell out of me. Oh and your Great Aunt Katherine is coming to the wedding now.”

Beep

“Jim, where are you? It’s almost six; did Michael make you stay late? Your dinner is cold and I’m getting cold. If you don’t get home soon, I’m going to change into sweats. Just…give me a call when you’re on your way home, ok? Love you, bye.”

Day 138  
Pam got in the car, slamming the door shut a little harder than she usually did. Without a word, she buckled her seatbelt and leaned against her arm to stare out the window. Jim, who had pulled over to pick her up a block away from the business park, stared at her a moment before putting the car in gear and pulling away from the curb.

“Do you want to talk about it?” he asked.

Pam continued to stare out the window silently. She wasn’t normally this withdrawn from Jim but she didn’t feel like discussing it because she was afraid she might break down again.

“I’m sorry about earlier,” Jim replied in a calm voice. She could tell it was one of the few times where Jim didn’t know how to respond. “I didn’t mean to yell at you.”

“You didn’t yell,” she assured.

“I just…” he wasn’t sure which words would comfort her. “The internship was a great opportunity. I didn’t want you to just throw that away.”

“I know,” she could feel the tears welling up again. She closed her eyes hard trying to keep them in.

“Pam?” Jim reached out his hand to gently rub her arm. “What is it?”

“We’re never…” her voice was high but it took all her will to keep it under control. “We’re not going anywhere, Jim. We can’t. It’s not even about studying art. That was always…” saying it out lout was upsetting her more and she was getting choked up. “I never expected…But we can’t even get a house we want. Not while…” Not while they’re bound to the documentary, she finished in her head. The tears were again spilling down her cheeks as she was unable to hold it in any longer. It was hard enough that she broke down in front of the cameras; it was worse now that it was in front of Jim.

They were only a few blocks from home but Jim pulled over anyway. “Hey,” he said comfortingly as he placed the car in park. “It’s alright.” He pulled her over to him and wrapped his arms around her. “The contract is only for a few more months then we’ll be free of it.” A few more months still felt like a lifetime. “We’ve made it this far, it’ll be okay.”

She sobbed a little harder into his chest. “It’s like that job in Maryland,” Pam spat out. “They keep doing this to us. I don’t want to do it anymore.”

“I know,” Jim said soothingly as he gently ran his hand through her hair. “I don’t either. But hey, right when it’s done we’ll check out that internship.”

Pam pulled away to nod up at him. Jim brushed the tears off her cheek. “Yeah, let’s do that,” she said, her voice a little shaky.

“So, let’s forget about it right now. We’ll go home, have a great dinner. I’ll let you pick the movie tonight, how does that sound?” he asked with a smile.

She forced a smile upon her face, he was trying so hard and she loved him for that. “That sounds good,” she said finally, wiping her face with her sleeve.

Jim hesitated before starting the car again. She knew he wanted to make sure she was going to be okay. She knew they would be, eventually, when the cameras finally left but it still felt like a hard road ahead. Especially when documentary people kept putting roadblocks. She continued to tell herself this as they rode home and when they finally reached their destination she had a sense of hope that it would end just fine.

Day 145  
Jim looked up from his computer over to where Pam sat at reception. She was scribbling something down, her lips pursed as she did so. He contemplated going up there but he refrained because he eyed the cameraman standing just a foot away, focusing in on Pam. It was a lost cause.

They hadn’t talked to each other all day and what frightened Jim the most was that it wasn’t the first time it had happened. When the cameras had first arrived they had both taken such a delight in sneaking away, capturing stolen kisses in the elevator and stairwell when the cameras weren’t around. But the fun of that had long worn off.

For a while, they went to work like normal people, not even acknowledging the fact that they were together. Now they barely spoke at work and he had to wonder when they stopped talking to each other.

It was Valentine’s Day. He had been constantly reminded of that all day with Kelly and Ryan both throwing their new romance in his face. He supposed it was some sort of payback for the year before when he and Pam had gone overboard with flowers and gifts. Everyone in the office had been annoyed then and he remembered clearly how Kelly had yelled at him to stop because she was depressed about not having a boyfriend they were only making it worse.

Phyllis was the one getting flowers and candies this year and he felt bad every time Pam had to bring her stuff over. He hadn’t gotten her anything. They agreed that no gifts would be ideal because of the cameras but now he wondered if he should cancel the plans he had to play poker with some friends. They had made plans to celebrate the holiday that weekend by going out of town, so Jim thought it would be alright to call up a few old college buddies. Now he wasn’t so sure it was a good idea. Pam’s scowl hadn’t let up all day.

Roy entered and Jim watched as he had a short conversation with Pam as she lamented about lack of Valentine’s Day gifts. He almost laughed aloud when Roy offered her the best sex of her life but had to contain it because the camera was on him. He’d have to joke with Pam about that later. At least Roy seemed to be enjoying himself. While he and Pam were struggling to deal with all the demands the producer put on them, Roy hadn’t seemed too put out. Maybe because he got the better end of the deal. For a split second, he was actually jealous of Roy’s happiness.

He looked at the clock and sighed. Only an hour left to deal with this craziness. At least Michael was out of the office and Dwight was so busy with writing love letters to his supposed girlfriend that work wasn’t stressing him out as well. Happy Valentine’s Day, he thought to himself.

Day 166  
Pam licked the final envelope, sealed it, and placed it down on the stack. It had taken her all day but she had finally finished addressing all the wedding invitations. Ryan and Kelly, who had agreed to help her, had long left, the two of them busy over some argument about marriage. She didn’t mind, though, because it left her to finish the invitations in peace.

She could barely contain how happy she was to be getting married soon and every step she took, such as sending out the invitations, made it seem that much more real. She had gone out with her mom about week ago to try on dresses and luckily found one that she really liked. She smiled broadly at the thought.

She started to gather all the invitations together when one fell out of the stack that Ryan had been working on. The minute she saw who it was addressed to, she couldn’t help but laugh. Right there in Ryan’s tiny scrawl was the name: Jim Halpert. She remembered him asking about the invitation when he had saw his name on the guest list. The only reason it was on there was because she knew the cameras would be filming her but she didn’t think Ryan would actually address it.

You’re inviting Jim?

The words echoed in her brain and the more she thought about it the funnier it got. Of course she was inviting the groom to the wedding.

Jim, hearing her laughing, came in to see what was going on. He took a seat next to her and she smiled at him brightly. “What?” he asked a little hesitantly.

“Here,” she said handing him his invitation. “You’re officially invited to my wedding.”

He looked over the small envelope curiously. “Wow. Thank you. I feel so privileged.”

She giggled. “Yeah, that was Ryan’s doing, so you can thank him.”

“Oh, I don’t know if I should. I mean, I was planning to crash the wedding,” he joked. “But now that I’m invited that takes all of the fun out of it.”

She threw her head back in laughter and he joined in. It was nice to joke around like that at work again, she thought to herself. It felt like it had been a long time. The longer the cameras stayed the more they seemed to sap the humor out of work. It was ironic, when she thought about it, because their branch had been picked, supposedly, because it was the funniest one.

She had worried that the distance being created between them at work would filter into their personal life but so far, fortunately, they had been alright. In some ways it made coming home more enjoyable as she was finally able to tell Jim all the things that she had dealt with during the day that she couldn’t say due to the cameras.

But she had missed this, them joking around about trivial things at work. And for a moment, she was glad the cameras guys were busy with Dwight’s salesman of the year speech so that they were allowed this moment.

“So, guess what,” Jim said when their laughter had died down. “I got the tickets.”

Pam’s eyes grew wide. “Really?”

“Yeah, we leave the day after the wedding. Can you believe the money from the documentary actually helped with something? ” Jim asked. “It makes them almost tolerable.”

Pam was more excited than she was before. Australia! She could hardly believe they were going and for their honeymoon no less. “Oh my god, Jim,” she breathed not really able to believe it was real.

It was his turn to grin. “So, guess what else?”

“What?” she asked not sure if this day could get any better.

“I gave Dwight talking points from Mussolini speeches,” he replied. “And hopefully, he’s giving them right now in front of hundreds of salesmen.”

Pam roared.

Day 180  
“Alright, great job,” Jim said with a smile, holding his hand up so that the 12-year old Abby could give him a high-five. The girl did so grinning at her accomplishment. “And that is how you sell paper,” he complimented. “I think you may be a natural at this.”

Abby tilted her head. “I don’t know,” she replied. “That was my mom and I think she may have bought it because I sold it to her.”

“Wow, how astute,” Jim commented. “Why don’t we try someone else then?” He figured he could call his dad and have Abby sell him some paper. Jim liked being around kids. Even though he would persuade anyone from being a paper salesmen Abby seemed to have fun doing his job and he wasn’t going to discourage it.

“Ok,” Abby replied. As Jim prepared for the next call, she turned her head around to glance at reception to where Pam was watching them with a grin. “Is the receptionist your girlfriend?” Abby asked bluntly.

Jim was taken aback a little and gaped open mouth for a second. He didn’t want to lie to the girl but the cameraman was standing only a foot away. “Uh, you know, Pam and I are just really good friends.”

“Really?” Abby replied in disbelief. “She keeps looking at you and smiling. And you guys were talking earlier. I think she likes you,” she said with all the wisdom that 12-year olds have.

Jim grinned. “Well, maybe we should ask her. I mean, she is really pretty. Do you think you could help me out?”

“Sure,” Abby replied seemingly very interested. “I helped Bobby Johnson ask out Katie Smith last year when he wouldn’t stop talking about her. I’m a pro.”

“Wow, sounds like it,” Jim said. “What should we do?”

“Well, Bobby sent Katie a note, so we should try that,” Abby suggested.

“Alright,” Jim said grabbing a pen and paper. He put down a simple message: Pam, do you like me? He folded up the paper and handed it to Abby. “You can deliver this right?”

She nodded and took the folded paper from him. As she walked up to reception, Pam looked up from her desk and gave him a suspicious look. He watched as she unfolded the paper and after a second, she let out a loud laugh. Pam then took a pen, scribbled down something on the paper and handed it back to Abby. Abby came back and set the paper down on his desk.

Amused by the little game, Jim unfolded the paper: No, you smell funny. Jim let out a loud laugh and glanced up at Pam who was pretending to look innocent. She shrugged her shoulders. “What?” she mouthed.

“What’s it say?” Abby asked anxiously, pulling the paper from his hands. “Oh,” she gave him a lop-sided smile. “Well, you do smell funny.”

Jim hadn’t expected this response. “What?” he asked confused. “I do?”

“Yeah, you smell like jellybeans,” Abby replied with a grimace. “And jellybeans are gross.”

He heard Pam laughing up at reception and he shot her a playful glare.

“What is so funny,” Dwight, who had now picked up on the conversation, asked. “Is there something on that paper about me?” he demanded.

“No,” Jim assured him.

“There is, isn’t there,” Dwight came back. Abby shot him a strange look.

Jim turned to face Abby and brought her close. “Hey Abby, do you like pranks?” Abby smiled.

Day 194  
Pam and Jim raced around the shelves and rested safely in the new aisle. After a second of catching their breath, they both burst into laughter. “I think we lost him,” Pam said peering around the corner into the main aisle.

“Good,” Jim said panting. “A moment alone.”

“I can’t believe followed us here,” Pam remarked about the cameraman who had come into the store not long after Pam and Jim arrived. They were getting gifts for Kevin and she didn’t understand why that would be so interesting. “You would think with it being Michael’s birthday they would have much more interesting things to follow.”

“I don’t know Pam, I think anyone would get sick of following Michael on his birthday. Chasing us is probably a break from that.” Jim looked up to see if the camera was around but he couldn’t see anyone. When his eyes lowered, the products in the aisle they were in caught his attention and he grinned over at Pam.

“What?” she asked scrunching her nose. “You want to buy Kevin a pack of condoms? That’s just gross.” She shuddered.

“No, for us,” he replied still grinning.

“Why?” she said not understanding what he was getting at. “We don’t use them anymore and we have, like, two boxes unopened under the sink.”

He ignored her comment and reached for one of the boxes. “What about glow in the dark?” he asked.

“You like glow in the dark. No one else gets to participate when you use those,” she muttered. He gave her a smirk and continued studying the boxes. “Is this because I teased you about the fabric softener?” she teased. “Are you concerned about your manhood or something?”

“Extra-large?”

“Don’t flatter yourself.”

“Ego killer.”

She shrugged in an attempt to seem innocent. “It’s what I do.”

He picked a box at the end of the row. “Ribbed for her pleasure,” he said raising his eyebrows suggestively.

“Are you trying to embarrassed me,” she challenged. “Because it’s not working…”

“If I was trying to embarrass you,” he said cutting her off. “I’d say something like…I’M BUYING THESE CONDOMS SO I CAN HAVE SEX WITH YOU TONIGHT.” He yelled so loudly that an elderly at the other end of the aisle looked at them strangely.

Pam’s cheeks immediately went crimson but she couldn’t help but double over with laughter. “I cannot believe you did that.”

He started laughing himself. “Come on, Pam…” before he got any further they both saw the cameraman approach. “Looks like we’ve been found out. Quick, hide the condoms under the noodles.”

Pam looked at him flustered. “We don’t need them,” she said in between her laughter.

“They’re for Kevin,” he explained. “Trust me, he’ll love it.” He quickly placed the large bag of M&Ms over the condom box just as the cameraman arrived. Pam and Jim tried to look innocent.

Day 222  
“…so Michael has him carrying around his own urine in a cup,” Jim was finishing up. Pam laughed as Jim explained to her why Dwight was acting so weird that day. “I can only assume that Michael thought he was on some kind of drug but I really doubt anyone has let him try drugs.”

“Unless it was accidentally,” Pam suggested through her giggles. “Could you imagine? Someone could give him a bag of crack and he would think it was sugar.”

Jim poured more Coke from the can they were sharing into his tiny cup and took another drink. “Yeah, it was crazy. And I couldn’t tell you. Oh and thanks, by the way, for the nice conversation with Kelly, and making a fool of me in the conference room and the missed work calls. You’re just…so kind,” he joked.

She began to giggle again. “I have to say, I’m impressed. I didn’t think you would last that long.”

A broad grin stretched across Jim’s lips. “That’s what she said.” Pam began to laugh harder.

At that moment, Jen came in the break room, which immediately killed Jim and Pam’s great mood. Without a word, she pulled out a chair and joined them at the table. Jim and Pam exchanged glances and they both were worried they had done something wrong. Unfortunately, the news was worse than that.

“Your corporate branch has renewed the contract with us so we’ll be coming back after a four month hiatus,” Jen explained with little fanfare.

Jim groaned. With only two weeks left in the current contract, and their wedding to look forward to, life had been looking much better lately. The idea of having to endure more of the camera-induced misery was a little too much to handle.

“Yeah, I thought you might react that way,” Jen said with a frown. “And based on today’s actions, the two of you aren’t even trying to suppress your feelings any more, are you?”

“I don’t think we should have to,” Pam answered. “Can’t you people just…hurry up the process?”

“We’re planning a compromise,” Jen continued.

“A compromise?” Jim didn’t like the sound of that.

Jen grinned the devilish grin she was so good at. “We’re going to change the status quo. We’ve figured we’ve used Roy about as much as we can. We’re going to go get rid of that angle.”

“Good,” Jim said under his breath.

“We thought up a catalyst to do that,” Jen said. “Jim, two weeks from now, when your company hosts the casino event, you’re going to tell Pam you love her.”

Pam eyed her suspiciously. “What’s the catch?”

“You’re going to turn him down,” Jen replied.

“What?” Jim asked.

“No,” Pam said firmly, slapping her palm on the table. “Why would I ever…”

“Oh, I can think of about a half dozen reasons,” Jen said rolling her eyes. “Look, we haven’t hammered out the details for what we want to do but we do know if we get you two together now, it’ll be too fast.”

“So, you think torturing us for another year would be fun.” Pam accused.

“Believe me,” Jen said in a hard voice. “If I had my way, I would have gotten rid of the two of you a long time ago. That’s all I’ve got for you for now.”

“Good, because it’s five and we’re going home,” Pam told her. She got up and Jim followed.

“Jim, wait,” Jen said grabbing on to his arm. “I need to talk to you for a second.”

Pam hesitated, scowling at Jen before leaving the room. Jim sat back down in the seat and squirmed in uncomfortably. Never in a million years could he have guessed what Jen was going to propose.

“Jim, there is a little bit more I need to discuss with you,” Jen started. “There’s a position opening up in your Stamford branch. We think you should take it…”

Day 229  
Pam lifted her head slightly to stare at the empty chair at Jim’s desk. She knew he was in New York but she wasn’t exactly sure why. He had told her that it was for some sort of meeting but she wasn’t sure why David Wallace or Jan would want him there instead of Michael. She felt slightly uneasy the whole morning.

It didn’t help that the whole office was still a little bruised from Michael’s attempt to solve everyone’s issues yesterday. The office was unusually quiet, only the sounds of computer keys clicking and the occasional motor of the copy machine kept the room from being absolutely silent. The phone had barely rung all morning and Michael, who was usually high-spirited, had remained locked in his office.

She wished Jim was there. Without him, the whole office seemed so much more drab and dreary. For a moment, she tried to imagine what life would be like if he didn’t work there and the thought sent a shiver up her spine. She didn’t think she would be able to handle it and she shook her head in an attempt to rid herself of the thought. But as she stared at the vacant chair, she had an odd nagging feeling that something was going to change.

Jim had been unusually quiet lately, both at home and at work. They had at least been communicating better at work, not like those months where they barely spoke. But lately, behind every joke and conversation they shared, there was something in Jim’s eyes that she just couldn’t place. A sadness of some sort. Pam wondered if it had to do with what Jen had told him last week. She and Jim were in the break room for a good twenty minutes and when Jim had finally come out, he tried to assure her that it was nothing worth talking about. He hadn’t been the same sense.

The cameraman came out from Michael’s office and queued in on her. She bent her head lower, trying to get out of the shot. There was only one more week to go then they would be rid of cameras and hopefully, at least for a little while, life would go back to normal. The cameras had been around for so long that she was beginning to forget what normal was like.

At least they were ending the charade soon, as Jen had talked to her at length about what would happen at the casino event next week. She had been given notes and scripts to the point that she felt she could do what they asked in her sleep. She and Jim had spent a few nights talking about the particular shot the documentary crew wanted but even though Jim claimed to be fine about the whole thing, the thought of telling him she didn’t love him back made her feel a little queasy. She constantly had to remind herself it was all fake.

Pam gave a short glance at the camera again before staring down at the pad of paper on her desk, a list of things that needed to be done before the wedding. There wasn’t much left on it and she smiled to herself thinking that it was only a month to go before the wedding. She wished she could concentrate on the preparations, but the uneasy feeling in her stomach wouldn’t subside. She looked back over to the empty chair.

The cameraman closed in on her making her feel more self-conscious than before. One more week, she told herself. Just one more week.


	3. Chapter 3

Day 236: 6:54am  
He still had seven minutes before the alarm went off but he had been awake for at least an hour, his mind racing about the decision that he had yet to make. He lay on his back, one hand resting behind his head as he stared at the ceiling and went over his options as he had done a hundred times before. He could take the job, which meant a pay raise and the prospect of not having the cameras around very long. But it also meant having to spend the first four months of his marriage away from her. Or he could stay and nothing would change. They would get their small summer break from the documentary crew, but they would have another year with the same contract. His head spun as he debated the pros and cons of each option and concluded that he didn’t care for either choice.

He turned on his side to face her. She was curled up on her side, her back towards him, her chest rising and falling as she steadily breathed in her sleep. He gently brushed a hand through her hair, loving the silky of feel of it in his fingers. She looked so beautiful as she slept and his heart ached at the prospect of ever having to leave her. He wasn’t sure it was something he could ever do. So many nights he had spent next to her that the idea of her not being there was hard to comprehend. He had gone back and forth so many times in the past two weeks over the decision but if asked now, as he watched her sleeping gently, he would flat out refuse to go.

His eyes wandered lower until they rested on the glittering diamond on her hand. With only a month until the wedding everything couldn’t be more ready. Pam had made sure every detail had been taken care of and with the exception of a things that would have to be taken care of last minute, they were all set. A month to go and the thought made his heart flutter. She would be his wife. His wife, he repeated to himself as he lightly traced his fingers over her hand, careful not to wake her. He loved the sound of that.

With a sigh, he rolled onto his back again. If only he could concentrate on the wedding instead of what happened when documentary crew returned. The idea of their return was why he contemplated going to Stamford at all. After eight months of them sticking cameras in his life he was ready to be done. He looked out the window at the still dark sky and thought about Connecticut. It was only a few hours away, Jen had explained to him. Close enough that Pam could visit as often as she wanted to. But still, it felt far.

Pam stirred in her sleep and Jim turned back towards her. “Jim?” came a quite muffled tone.

“Yeah?” Jim responded, coming close to whisper in her ear.

She turned and her eyes drifted open. “You keep tossing,” she said sleepily.

“I’m sorry, it’s alright,” he assured her though he knew she worried about him. “You have a few minutes if you want to go back to sleep.”

She eyed him curiously. “What are you thinking about?”

“You,” he said with a grin. He bent down and gave her a kiss on the nose.

She reached out and brushed a few strands of hair off his forehead. “I love you,” she responded.

“I know,” he replied. “It’s just…going to be a long day.”

A smile crossed her lips and her eyes widened in realization as she became more awake. “Hey, that casino thing is tonight. That should be fun, right?”

It usually was but that was the deadline. He had until the casino night in the warehouse ended to make his decision or the Stamford deal would be off the table and they would be stuck with the cameras for another year. “Yeah,” he breathed.

9:57am  
The morning started off better than he anticipated. Not only had Dwight come in his dead grandfather’s tux but also he had been able to get Dwight to believe he had telepathic powers. And, of course, Pam had helped wondrously with that. Another mark went to the ‘stay’ column on the invisible tally chart in his head. It was becoming harder and harder to find reasons to go.

Despite the cameras in his face and the huge pile of work that he knew he wouldn’t be getting done that day he was beginning to become optimistic. That was until Jen called him in the conference room for a one on one meeting. There were few people on the planet that Jim truly disliked. Jen Wilson was one of them.

The first thing he noticed when he entered the conference room and took his usual seat next the window was that the cameramen were not present. This would be a private meeting. As Jen shut the door, he took the chance to throw Pam a helpless look. He saw Pam crane her neck from reception but the door was closed before their eyes met. Jen turned around and leaned against the table.

“Well?” she asked impatiently.

“Well what?” Jim gave back.

“Have you made your decision?” she snarled. She didn’t like playing around.

“I thought I had until after the casino thing,” Jim said slowly. “Midnight or something like that?”

“Technically, you do, but I thought we’d just get this thing over with now,” Jen said.

Jim let out a sigh. His eyes wondered past Jen and to the window facing the office where he could see Pam walking across the room, handing Stanley a memo. In that moment, he couldn’t imagine not being in the same place as her every day. He couldn’t do it. “I, uh, don’t think I am going to take the job,” he replied softly.

Jen pursed her lips. “You do realize that if you stay, nothing changes. The contract we give you will be exactly the same. Despite whatever happens tonight, the status quo won’t be pushed any further forward. True, Roy would be out of the picture but that doesn’t mean that we would let you be together on screen. I know the two of you have been struggling with this for the past eight months. Do you really want to try to put your marriage through that?”

Jim’s eyes widened. Jen never had looked out for their best interest and was confused as to why she was so anxious for him to leave. “You want me to take the job?” he asked.

“Yes,” Jen said plainly.

“Why?” he asked hesitantly. “From what you told me earlier, I was under the belief that if I left for Stamford, the camera crew would only be around for a few months. Then Pam and I would be free of any contract. I thought you people were looking for some great story.”

“The benefactor does,” Jen answered seriously. “I don’t. I’m not going to lie I think when this documentary comes out it will work just fine without any romance angle. Truth is, the two of you have been just as much of a pain in my side as I have been in yours. I’m not supposed to be swaying you one way or the other, but if I can get you to leave Scranton, it’ll give me less of a headache to deal with. I can go back to making an actual documentary.”

“So, you want me to do this so I can make your life easier?” Jim asked, not believing that after all the crap they had gone through, him leaving would be a benefit to Jen. “Well, that certainly changes my mind,” he added sarcastically.

“It’ll be better for you in the long run,” Jen gave. He could tell she was irritated, as she often was with him, but he could tell there was a little bit of concern in her eyes. “You go, the cameras will only be there for a few months, we can wrap up this absurd love story and you will end up with a better job in a better place than this dying town. Besides, this branch isn’t going to be around that much longer anyway, I’d get out while you still can.”

“What are you talking about?” He didn’t like how she was being cryptic about the closing of the branch. “How could you possibly know when or even if Scranton is closing?”

“Oh, come on, Jim,” Jen let out. “Anyone can see it from a mile away. The way this branch is run? Dunder-Mifflin can’t afford to keep this branch going.” She gave him an evil smile. “Not for long anyway. So, do you still want to stay?”

Jim sunk low in his chair. So much for the decision, he thought. “I’ll give you my answer tonight,” he replied.

11:47am  
Kevin was in a rock band. He wasn’t sure how he never knew this but he supposed he didn’t know everything about his coworkers. But man he wished he could actually book Scrantonicity for their wedding. He would never really consider it; he took the wedding preparations as seriously as Pam did but even though Scrantonicity sounded as horrible as the rest of the bands they had been watching, Kevin playing the drums in that hat was one of the best things he had seen all day.

He smiled as they popped in the next tape, the one with the Kiss cover band. He didn’t think anyone would ever want to use Kiss covers at their wedding but who knew? Pam looked happy though as she swayed back and forth while listening to music that made Scrantonicity look like a professional rock group. She had seemed happier these days. Maybe it was planning the wedding, which he knew she loved doing, or maybe it was the fact that the cameras were going to be gone for the summer. He wasn’t sure why exactly, but coming to work didn’t seem so bad anymore, for her at least.

“Hey, can we talk a sec?” he asked when the cameraman decided to go on break. The tape of the Kiss cover band was over and she got up to replace it with another. He could tell the seriousness in his voice startled her so she didn’t turn on the tape and turned her attention to him.

“What’s up Jim? Don’t want to go with a band at all?” She tried to joke but it didn’t stop the worry line from forming on her brow.

“No,” he let out a forced laugh. “How would you feel if I got a new job?”

She eyed him suspiciously. “Jim, we’ve talked about this plenty of times. Of course I would love it if you got a new job. And you’d be thrilled if I got a new job. Do you want to start looking after the wedding? I mean, if we are to find some over the summer, then we don’t have to deal with this stupid documentary anymore.”

“Right,” Jim replied distractedly. “But what would you say if I got a job that required us to be apart?”

“Apart?” she asked, unsure. “As in not working together? Plenty of couples don’t work together and they function just fine.” She gave him a hopeful smile.

He shifted uneasily in his seat. “No, I’m sure we’d be fine if we worked in separate places but… what if we had to live apart for awhile. I mean, what if I got this really good job opportunity, and it would be only for a short while, but we had to live in different places?”

He could tell she wasn’t quite understanding what he was saying. “I don’t want to be away from you,” she responded after a moment of thinking it over. “In fact, I hate the idea of ever having to be away from you but Jim, if you’ve found something and it really is that good of an opportunity. I would really like to discuss it because if it really was better then I think we could manage.”

Jim nodded. “Okay…”

“Does this have to do with what Jen talked to you about earlier?” she questioned.

“Kind of,” Jim replied. He had been holding off from telling her about anything for a long time. In truth, he had never anticipated wanting to go and while he contemplated it, there was never a doubt in his mind that he would stay. But now that he knew she would be on board and the more he thought of what a better opportunity it would be, it was time to discuss the real possibility of leaving Scranton.

But before he could actually say anything about the transfer, the cameramen return from their break. Jim let out a sigh as they entered the conference room. The conversation would have to wait until later.

“We can talk about it later, alright?” he asked.

She nodded but he noticed that he had worried her.

“You are amazing, you know that?” he offered in the charming voice that he knew usually made her feel better.

“I know,” she said with a half smile. “You know what else is amazing?” she asked pointing the remote at the TV. “Forty year old guys singing Backstreet Boys songs.”

Jim’s eyes grew wide. “Really? That’s what’s on this tape?” She nodded. “I hope they dance.”

Pam giggled as she pushed play.

3:28pm  
Jim had already eaten his bag of pretzels by the time Pam made it back to the break room.

“Sorry, I’m late,” she said, going directly for the vending machine. “Michael had me make him a list of all the non-profit organizations he could possibly use for a charity. After about fifty pages I decided he was never going to go through all of them so I just gave him what I had.” She placed the quarters she held into the slot and picked out a bag of M&Ms. The bag fell with a plunk.

“You mean you’ve finally convinced him that ‘Afghanistans with AIDS’ isn’t real?” Jim said with mock disbelief as he slowly folded the empty pretzel bag.

Pam rolled her eyes as she bent down to retrieve her candy. “At this point, I don’t really care what he picks. It’s not my problem.” She grabbed the chair next to him and sat down. “Oh, and by the way, Michael inadvertently has two dates to tonight’s event.”

“Wow,” Jim said rubbing his chin. “That’s rather impressive. How’d he manage that?”

“Well, one is Jan, of course,” Pam said as she opened the bag.

“Of course,” Jim replied. “Because that woman loves making her life miserable.”

“And the other is Carol.”

“Who’s Carol?”

Pam couldn’t contain a giggle. “His real estate agent.”

“I don’t know how he does it,” Jim said in wonderment. “I mean, are these women that lonely? Or what?” He shook his head.

“I have no idea,” Pam said popping a few cadies in her mouth. “Hey, guess what,” she said, her eyes wide with excitement. “You talking about jobs this morning got me thinking and I figured if you were going to start looking for jobs, maybe I should try again with art school. So, I did some research and looks like the community college is going to be offering some cheap beginning classes in the fall.”

“That’s great,” Jim said happy for her. He knew she had wanted to do art school for a long time but had been held back between not getting in anywhere and finances for the wedding. But because of the extra money from the documentary crew it would be possible. And if nothing else, Jim thought, it would give her something to do while he was in Connecticut, that is, if he took the job.

“So, I think we should sit down and talk over what we want to do,” she continued with a little bit of hesitance.

“Yeah, definitely,” Jim added. It would have been the perfect time to talk to her about the job situation, but since there was a camera man pacing just outside he again avoided the subject. “But, uh, can we talk about it when we get home?” He nodded towards the window to where the cameraman’s back was to them.

She didn’t seem convinced of Jim’s reason and she again looked at him, worried. She could tell something was up. “Yeah, let’s do that,” she replied. She decided to change the subject but Jim knew the conversation about the future was far from off the table. “So, Roy came up to speak with me a few minutes ago.”

“Yeah, I noticed that,” Jim replied, not hiding his disregard for the guy. He had been nothing but pleasant to work with but it still didn’t stop him from not caring for Roy too much.

“Said he’ll be at our place around six to pick me up,” she explained.

Jim grimaced. “That’s nice.”

“Hey, this is the last time,” Pam assured him. “You have no idea how glad I am to not have to spend any more time with Roy Anderson. If I have to hear any more stories about the number of women he and Darryl have done things with and the things that they’ve done… I’m not sure why they act as if I’m just another one of the guys.”

“Yeah, that’s not gross,” Jim commented. “Sounds like Samantha dumping him after that ten year relationship really did a number on him.”

Pam shook her head. “That was over a year ago. I don’t feel sorry for him. In fact, I think I almost understand her reasoning. You know what I thought of the other day? If he was my real fiancé and if we were going to get married, my name would be Pamela Anderson.”

Jim let out a chuckle. “Okay, let’s not even joke about that.”

Pam shuddered then studied her real fiancé carefully. “Are you sure you’re alright about tonight?”

With all the real decision making that weighed on his mind he had nearly forgotten about the scene they were supposed to do that evening. Because it wasn’t real and he had always been confident in how Pam felt about him, it barely seemed to register. “Yeah, really, Pam, it’s fine,” he assured her. “It’ll be more fun than the Dundies.”

“At the Dundies, I didn’t have to tell you I didn’t love you,” she reminded him.

“But you do love me,” he came back.

“I do,” she eyed him curiously. “It’s just that, well, you’ve been kinda acting strange lately?”

“Have I?” he asked, trying to play it cool. “Look, we’ve been over it a thousand times since Jen asked us to do it. We’ve made up our little script, we know what’s happening. I think I’m going to be just fine because I know everything that’s going to come out of your mouth is a lie. And,” he leaned in closer so he could whisper. “Later tonight, you can prove to me that you were lying.”

Pam playfully rolled her eyes at him. “Just know that whatever happens tonight,” she said seriously, resting one of her hands over his, “that none of it’s real.”

He smiled at her. “I know,” he replied. He suddenly felt very guilty about not telling her about the transfer. He was just about to say something when the documentary crew once again interrupted them.

This time Jen bustled in. “Great, you are both in the same place,” she said in a huff. “I want to go over tonight again with you.”

Pam and Jim exchanged looks. “Alright,” Jim gave in.

“I have to get my notes,” Jen replied in a hurry. “I’ll be right back.” She exited just as quickly as she came but the two cameramen came in and took seats near them.

“You’d think they’d get tired of this,” Pam complained under her breath. “There’s got to be something more interesting going in the rest of the office, especially with everyone getting ready for the event tonight.”

“Well, it’s the last day,” Jim said. It was a tiny consolation for everything they’ve been through. “And we won’t have to see them for months. Months, Pam.”

“I wish it were forever,” Pam complained. “I’m so sick of this documentary. I hate that they’re coming back.”

“Let’s not think about that,” Jim said with an encouraging smile. “Let’s just think about a month from now when it’s just you and I on some secluded beach.”

Pam let out a sigh. “Let’s just fast forward to then and forget about tonight?”

“I’m all for that,” Jim agreed happily. “So, is it settled?” She looked at him oddly. “We’re having Scrantonicity for our wedding band.”

He loved seeing her smile stretch across her lips. “I told you, I am not having a band that has Kevin as a singer at my wedding…”

5:52pm  
Jim adjusted the sweater so it was straight, rolled the sleeves up, and ran a hand through his hair instead of a comb. The reflection in the bedroom mirror was satisfactory enough. He was never sure what to wear to these things, but Pam had assured him his outfit was fine and he wasn’t one to argue when it came to fashion.

He was slightly nervous about that night and still wanted to talk to Pam about Stamford but with so much going on he hadn’t had a chance. Michael decided to give another inspirational speech before letting everyone go that evening, traffic was rougher than usual, and they had just enough time to grab some fast food before coming home and showering. Not any time to sit down and have a serious conversation about their future.

Pam was still in the bathroom finishing up her hair and make-up. Jim sat down on the edge of the bed and patted his leg lightly as he waited. In his head, he went over how he would tell her but there didn’t seem to be an easy way to mention that he was seriously contemplating, only few months into their marriage, taking a job that would relocate him two states away.

“Jim, have you seen my shoes?” Pam yelled from the other room.

“They’re out by the door,” he informed her.

“So, I’m totally going to win all your money tonight,” Pam said playfully as she came out of the bathroom putting on an earring.

“Yeah, you’re not going to…” His eyes widened when he saw her and his mouth hung open mid-sentence. He couldn’t believe how beautiful she looked, her hair done so up nicely, gentle curls flowing her over her shoulders, her light blue shimmering dress hugging her in all the right places. “I, uh, wow,” he finally managed to get out.

“And that is how you’re going to lose,” Pam said with a grin, bending over to give him a tender kiss.

“You think you’re so clever, huh?” he teased before pulling her closer to kiss her back.

“I do,” she responded as she pulled away. Her eyes remained lovingly on him. “You’re gonna want to wipe that lipstick off before you leave,” she said, gently cupping his chin and running her thumb over his bottom lip.

“You sure you don’t want to just skip this thing?” he asked seriously, pulling her down onto his lap. Before she could respond, there was a knock at the door.

Pam pressed her forehead to his. “Probably Roy.”

“The one time he’s actually on time,” Jim lamented.

Roy was at the door, excited like an eager puppy. “Hey, man,” he said stepping into the townhouse. “You guys looking forward to…” he stopped mid-sentence when he saw Pam. Jim was used to Roy’s stares at Pam but this time it made him a little uncomfortable. “Whoa, you can clean up nice,” he complimented.

Pam wasn’t sure how to respond to that. “Uh, yeah, you too,” she said, though Roy looked as though he had picked out some old sweater and pants that his mom chosen for him years ago.

Roy’s eyes lingered longer than Jim would have liked. “Yeah, so I’ll be taking her home tonight,” he informed Roy to get his attention away from Pam.

“Oh, yeah, I figured since you guys are doing that thing tonight,” Roy said in an oddly eager tone. “So, what’s going on with that anyway? They didn’t really tell me anything. I’m out of the picture now, right? That’s what they told me. I mean, it’s been fun, but I know this whole gig has been slowing up my chances to get girls.”

Jim shook his head. He didn’t even want to know what Roy was talking about. “Yeah, it’ll be all taken care of tonight.”

Roy’s eyes grew wide. “Aw, Pam, do we get to do a big break up scene or something? Wouldn’t that be cool? Too bad they never had me fight Halpert. That would have been fun to get on film.”

Jim couldn’t believe how disappointed Roy looked. Personally, he was grateful a fight was never staged. Even rigged he didn’t think he would come out of it that well since Roy seemed to be overzealous in nearly everything he did. “Yeah, real fun,” Jim said sarcastically. Roy didn’t catch on.

Pam had gotten her shoes on, grabbed her purse, and was ready to go. “Alright, let’s do this,” she said. He could tell that now that it was time, she was a little nervous about how the night was going to play out. He’d be lying if he said he was just fine.

“Okay, I’ll see you there,” he said. He bent down to give Pam a quick kiss on the lips. “Love you.”

“Love you too,” she responded.

“Man, I can’t believe this is the last time,” Roy said with a tiny bit of regret in his voice that Jim didn’t understand. He glanced back at Jim and gave him an odd look. “Dude, I think you have lipstick on.”

“Thanks Roy,” Jim responded wiping his mouth as Pam gave him a smile. “I’ll see you guys there.”

Pam waved then was ushered out the door by Roy, who began animatedly talking about ways to win at Black Jack and how he knew he would take everyone out.

Jim leaned on the doorframe and folded his arms as he watched the two walk down the pavement to Roy’s truck. He let out a little sigh, thankful that tonight there were a few things that he was glad to see change.

6:25pm  
Jim wasn’t sure how it was possible, because he left about ten minutes after they did, but he showed up before Pam and Roy arrived at the business park. He took a seat at one of the poker tables and proceeded to start messing with Dwight off the bat. He didn’t care how unsure he was about how the night would turn out; every opportunity he had to screw with Dwight he took. Within ten minutes of being there, he already had Dwight convinced that when he coughed, he held a good hand and got a great deal of humor out of Dwight basing his betting solely on that.

Pam finally arrived and when he saw Roy enter with Darryl he understood where she had been. She looked happy though and for that he was grateful. All too often he would hear stories about how Roy would be an endless pain, especially when Darryl was involved. She waved to him with a smile from across the warehouse and he waved back but because the cameras were right there, she took a turn over to the roulette table. He settled back into his seat and played another hand, making sure Dwight would go out based on his actions.

Not long after, Jim headed up to the bar to get a drink, hopefully to calm his nerves a little. Ryan was there, on Kelly’s orders, getting an elaborate mixed drink. Jim laughed to himself, thinking how upset Kelly would be if Ryan got any of it wrong.

“So, that’s still going on, huh?” Jim asked as he tapped the bar, waiting for the bartender to get back with the beer.

Ryan shrugged, looking almost defeated. “Yeah.”

There was an awkward silence, he didn’t know Ryan at all and wasn’t sure what to say to the guy. “So, uh, I take it Kelly does all the talking?”

“Mostly,” Ryan replied. He looked around, avoiding eye contact with Jim.

“How do you deal with it?” Jim asked, thinking he wouldn’t be able to stand dating Kelly for twenty minutes. “I mean, doesn’t she just drive you nuts?”

“Sometimes,” Ryan replied nonchalantly, though based on past experiences, Jim supposed Ryan was more annoyed with Kelly more often than he let on. “But I guess it works. At least we don’t have to pretend our relationship doesn’t exist.” Ryan had a bit of a smirk on his face. “If I were you, I wouldn’t let those producers push you around so much. Grow some balls, man. Tell them off, that’s what I would do.” The bartender set down Kelly’s drink and with that, Ryan was gone.

Jim slumped down in the stool and began to sip out of the bottle the bartender had placed in front of him.

“Hey,” Pam came up beside him and nudged him the arm. “What’s up?”

Jim shrugged. “Ryan just told me to grow a pair,” he replied.

Pam let out a laugh. “Well, maybe I should go tell him that I know you have a rather nice pair.”

Jim blushed and took a sip of his beer to disguise it. “Thanks, you’re so sweet.”

“So, what’s his deal?” she asked sitting on the stool next to him. “Just being an ass again?”

“He thinks I should go tell off the producers for making us sign that contract. Said I shouldn’t let them control me.”

“Are you kidding?” Pam asked in disbelief. “The guy who can’t even tell Kelly to get her own drink? Don’t listen to him, he’s just trying to make himself feel better for being such a loser.”

Jim let out a laugh. “So what have you been up to?”

Pam’s eyes grew wide in excitement. “I won twenty dollars at the roulette table,” she replied with a grin. “Totally played the pants off Roy and took all his money.”

“Oh, sure,” Jim said shaking his head. “Because it takes such skill to play that.”

“I told you earlier that I was a roulette expert. Are you going to take me on?” she challenged. “Or are you too scared?”

“Yeah, you want a challenge? I’ll play you in poker,” Jim returned. “Then we’ll see who can have bragging rights.”

“Yes, we will play, then I will take all your money,” she taunted.

“Ha!” Jim said with a grin. “I always knew you only wanted me for my money.”

“What money?” Pam came back, slapping her hand on the bar. “You don’t have any money.”

“Yeah, because you keep taking it all,” Jim said with a laugh.

“Cheapskate.”

“Gold-digger.”

“Well, it’s a good thing you’re so darn cute then,” Pam said smiling, and giving him a playful nudge in the arm. “We should play Ryan and take all of his money.” She let out an evil laugh.

“Oh, Beesly,” Jim said proudly. “I’m glad I’m marrying you.”

“Can I get you anything miss?” the bartender asked.

“Yeah, rum and Coke,” Pam said without hesitance.

“No margaritas today?” Jim teased. “And you said this would be as fun as the Dundies.” He gave her a fake pout.

Pam scrunched her nose. “You bug me.”

“You love me.”

9:51pm  
“Looks like it’s just you and me Beesly.”

“It’s always just you and me.”

“You think you can handle it?”

“Bring it, Halpert.”

He didn’t get to see her competitive side very often, but he was well aware that she had one. And he loved seeing her all riled up. He sent her a flirty smile as the dealer laid down cards.

Kevin had lost the previous round to Pam and he was the only one sitting at the table with them, watching closely as the hand unfolded. Jim had two nines and a third one sat on the table waiting. He tried hard to conceal a grin, not wanting to give himself away. Instead, he watched Pam as she studied her own cards.

He tapped his cards on the table. Pam had a large pile of chips in front of her and he knew he didn’t have much of a chance but he thought he’d go for it anyway. “Fifty,” he placed his bet.

“I’ll call,” she replied with a devilish smile. She pushed her chips forward, purposely leaning over the table to show off more cleavage. Jim’s eyes wandered lower and a grin formed on his lips. She wasn’t often a tease but tonight she was something else. He enjoyed the show and he knew she knew that.

The dealer set a seven on the table and Jim watched Pam’s lips twitch, trying hard not to give herself away. But Jim didn’t think she looked as nearly as confident as she had before, so he pushed further. “Fifty,” he said again, putting out his chips.

The grin immerged on her lips and she eyed him intently. “One-hundred,” she came back. She bit her lip as she placed her bet.

Jim placed a few more chips on in the middle. “I’ll call,” he said with a smirk.

“You think you’re going to get me by letting me call the shots?” Pam challenged, giving him a flirty laugh.

“Oh, I know how to get you,” Jim returned low voice giving her a dark and lustful gaze. Jim immediately thought of those daring times, usually in the conference room when they would sit next to each other and he would slowly graze her thigh but their proximity prevented that now. Instead, He nodded slowly, staring at her intensely, letting her know exactly what he was thinking.

She blushed slightly but stared at him back just as intensely and soon, there was no one in the room but the two of them, each of them going back to a private moment only they shared. Jim’s heart began to race as he looked deep in her eyes, thinking she had the same beautiful, sensual look on her face when she was under him just last night.

“Hey, uh, guys,” it was Kevin’s voice that caused them to come crashing back to the reality. At first, Jim thought he was just uncomfortable being between the two of them, but Kevin was never known for his modesty and then Jim realized that cameraman had come over.

They finished out the hand, as flirty and playful as ever but toned down a notch with the camera present. He went all in, thinking she was completely bluffing, but in fact, when the last card turned, she had a straight and he only had three nines. He may have been out of the game but it had been worth playing.

Not a moment after the game had ended he saw Jen’s face in the distance. The fun and games were over and now they had to do what they had been dreading all evening.

As Pam happily raked in her chips, Jim came to her side and leaned in close to her ear. “We need to meet in about twenty minutes,” he started.

“In the bathroom?” she whispered in a sultry voice that made his knees go weak.

He lamented that they couldn’t do that. “The parking lot,” he responded.

Her face dropped. “It’s time?”

He nodded over at Jen who was still staring. “Yeah…”

10:33pm  
“Well, have you told anyone about the transfer?” Jan asked.

“No, I…”

“Well, you should.” Jan took a long drag on her cigarette as Jim contemplated her statement.

He hadn’t talked with Pam about it yet and as much as he hated to even think of it, he was seriously leaning towards taking the Stamford job. Jan was oblivious to his deep thought and rocked back and forth, lost in her own troubles while slowly taking drags on the cigarette. While she was here, and somewhat in a distracted state, he thought he’d take advantage and get some advice from her as a friend and not as his employer.

“Jan, do you, um, think the cameras are doing the company any good?” he asked slowly.

She let out a forced laugh. “Honestly, as much as I think they’re a pain in the ass, the guy that runs the whole thing is ungodly rich.” She paused to take another smoke. “We need all the help we can get. Dunder-Mifflin is bleeding Jim. The whole paper business is one giant shit hole and I’m sitting in the middle of it. We’re sitting in the middle of it. Get out while you still can.”

“So, you think this transfer is a good thing?” he asked, hoping that she would be able to give some sort of valuable insight. Though asking the woman who thought hooking up with Michael was a good idea made her judgment questionable.

“Does it matter if you’re sinking in a wooden boat or a cruise liner?” she gave him. Her face softened a little when Jim sighed and leaned against the car himself. “I’m sorry, Jim, I’m just- You know what- Get out of Scranton. Get the hell out of Scranton, this place is just-” she let out a sigh and flicked her cigarette across the parking lot. “Listen, this stays between you and me. If I hear any wind of it from Michael or anyone…”

“No, I won’t say anything,” Jim assured her.

Jan rubbed her forehead worriedly. “There have been serious talks about shutting down the Scranton branch. Even with what the documentary helps out with, it’s still not enough to keep all the branches going. Sometimes I think they want Scranton to fail. Anyway… I don’t think it will last another year, not with Michael’s-” she paused on his name and winced. “Take the job in Stamford. If the documentary crew cut you a deal, I’d say take it. It’s either that or I suggest you and Pam start putting your resumes together.”

Hearing it from Jan made it seem so much more real. “Alright,” Jim replied softly.

“I’m not staying much longer,” Jan shuddered as a cold breeze swept by. “Let me know what you plan to do,” she said before pushing herself away from the car and heading back inside.

As Jan left, Jen exited the building and came straight forward, looking far too eager for his taste. “You all set?” she asked.

“Yeah, um, Jen, I need to say something,” Jim let out.

Jen looked at him, unsure. “You haven’t made up your mind yet, have you?”

“No, no,” he said waving his hands. “It’s just- I’m going to take the job in Stamford.”

“That’s great, we…”

Jim cut her off. “But only under a few conditions.”

“Okay,” Jen said, not liking the new assertiveness that had come over him.

“If I go, then it’s only three months and you wrap up the storyline,” Jim started. “When Pam moves with me, I don’t want you guys to follow. And I want limited time while I’m at Stamford. I realize I can’t stop you from shooting at Scranton, but I know you’ll be following me and I don’t want the cameras in my face all the time there. And under absolutely no circumstance will there be any cameras at my wedding or on my honeymoon.”

“Those seem like reasonable requests…”

“And if Scranton does close,” Jim continued, not letting Jen get another word in, “And for whatever reason you guys pick up and move to Stamford, the contract ends and your documentary will have to deal with a happily married couple.”

Jen looked angry. “Jim, we can’t promise you that.”

“Then no deal,” Jim said firmly.

Jen stared at him hard and clenched her jaw. “Fine,” she said through gritted teeth. “Now, are you ready for this?”

Jim nodded and followed Jen around the corner to where Roy’s car was parked. He could hear Pam’s laughter as she said goodbye to Roy. Jim’s stomach turned.

10:49pm  
He couldn’t believe he had gotten that emotional. Jim leaned his back against the side of the building and looked out into the darkness as he thought about what had just happened. He was embarrassed by his own vulnerability. True, the whole thing had been fake. True, he knew Pam hadn’t meant a word she said but still it had affected him more than he had anticipated. It still sent a very cold shiver down his spine. He had come around the side of the building just to have a moment alone, to put himself together before heading back.

He could only imagine Pam really rejecting would hurt ten times more than her pretending to. He couldn’t imagine what life would be like if he lived in a world where that moment had actually happened. He didn’t know if he would be able function if he had to endure the pain of that. Interestingly though, if the situation had been real, he’d have a solid reason for taking the transfer to Stamford. He laughed at the irony.

In the shadowy distance, he saw a figure approach him. He could hear laughter and chattering, the evening was winding to a close and people were slowly leaving. But he knew it was her and he smiled taking comfort that she would come back. The soft footsteps came forward and the orange glow of the security light illuminated her face. She looked upset and worried and he wondered if the whole thing toyed with her emotions as well.

“Jim,” she said hesitantly as she came closer. “Are you okay?”

He nodded but wasn’t sure if she could see him the dark. “Yeah, I’ll be fine,” he tried to assure her but she didn’t look satisfied. “It just got… intense. No big deal.”

“Jim, I’ve known you for four years now,” she said seriously. “I have never seen you tear up.”

“You didn’t know I can cry on cue?” Jim tried to joke. “Well, all you needed to do was ask.”

“Stop,” she said with concern. She grabbed on to his hand and he knew that she didn’t want to play around anymore. “They shouldn’t have made us do that. It was cruel, it was dark, it was…” her voice trailed off but he understood what she was getting at. “I can’t believe I said those things to you, I-” she swallowed hard and looked up at him with the most loving gaze she had ever given him. “I love you, Jim. I am in love with you so much that sometimes it hurts because I worry that one day you won’t be there and I don’t know if I could ever handle that. And I know that is crazy and irrational but these past few months, whenever I had to spent time with Roy, I would always think about how lucky I am to have found you. I just want you to know that I would never hurt you like back there. Ever! So, I’m sorry they made me do that. I’m so sorry I had to say that to you.”

If he had ever had any insecurities about her feelings, they were completely erased. He felt nothing but love and gratitude for her but he felt a twinge of guilt at the pit of his stomach as well. It was only fair that he tell her the truth. He took deep breath in. “I love you too. And I’d be lying if I said that I didn’t feel anything back there,” he admitted. “I know you didn’t mean those words. It was just a script, I just…” he trailed off, licked his lips and started again. “The reason I’ve been acting so strange lately is because I got offered a job in Stamford.”

She looked at him curiously. “Is this a good thing?”

He tilted his head, giving her a lop-sided smile. “I don’t know. Two weeks ago, Jen came up to me with an offer. I transfer to Stamford, the cameras would be only around for a few months and then you would be able to come with me and we would be done with it.” He took another deep breath. “Or, we stay here and… endure another year of this misery.”

Anger slipped onto Pam’s face. “Is this why you were asking me about living apart earlier, Jim? Well my answer is no, I don’t want to do it. I don’t want a part of it…” she stopped when she saw Jim swallow hard and look at the ground. “You already agreed to this, didn’t you?” Pam asked reading his expression clearly.

“They wanted an answer tonight,” Jim said after a long pause. “And I had never intended to take the job but Jan told me the branch was going to close down, and Stamford would be job security and a pay raise…”

“And you didn’t come talk to me about this?” she asked. “Jim, we’re supposed to be a team, we’re supposed to…”

“I know,” Jim said keep his head low, not wanting to see the disappointment in her eyes. “And I wanted to, I didn’t decide until tonight. But Pam, after tonight, I want nothing to do with those cameras. Nothing. So if it means we have to go to Connecticut to get the hell away from them, then I’ll do it.”

“Jim…” she said softly. She was still very upset, he could tell, but she put a comforting hand on his arm. “I understand that these people are monsters, contorting this screwed up documentary into some twisted reality show. And after tonight, if presented with the same situation, I would do the same thing… but Jim, I would follow you to the ends of the Earth if you asked me. But you have to ask. I just wish… I just wish you would have come to me sooner.”

Jim nodded. “I know…” he said, letting his voice trail off into the night. He wasn’t sure if he had any other words for her.

“Let me get my stuff from upstairs,” she said. “We can talk about it more when we get home.” With that, she headed back in the direction she had come, leaving him to once again in deep contemplation.

11:10pm  
Jim paced in front of the doors to the business park while he waited for Pam to come back downstairs. It had been nearly ten minutes and he wasn’t sure why it was taking her so long. It only worried him that she was more upset then she had let on. He stared at the ground as he walked, wondering why he hadn’t just told her in the first place.

The door to the lobby opened and Jim’s head perked up in hopes that it was Pam. It wasn’t. It was only Creed, who looked like he had stuffed too many things into his pockets. He smiled brightly when he saw Jim. “Hey, there, man, great night, huh?”

“Uh, yeah,” Jim replied, never knowing quite how to talk to Creed.

“You looked bummed. What is it, girl trouble? That girl that sits up at reception is mad at you.”

Jim looked at him oddly. “How did you know?”

“Two ways mirrors. Look, I’m sure if you just tell her you like her, you’ll have a shot, man.”

“No,” Jim started confused. “We’re already…”

Creed cut him off. “Just go up in there and kiss her. No nonsense. It’s what the girls want. It’s how I got Squeaky Fromme.” He was unusually cheerful about the whole thing.

Jim’s jaw dropped in disbelief. “I’ll just go up there,” he said thinking it would be better to get away from Creed. There was no use sulking anyway, what was done was done.

Jim made his way up to the office and opened the door to see Pam sitting at reception talking on the phone. Her voice was low, but he figured she was talking to her mother, something she always did when she was frustrated and he wasn’t around. Only this time, he supposed, she was talking about him.

She hadn’t heard him come in and he stopped in the entryway taking a moment to look her over. For a second, he was reminded of the first time he had seen her, his first day of work four years ago. She had been sitting there just like that, talking on the phone with the same tired look on her face. He had found her stunning even then and couldn’t believe his luck when she had agreed to go on a date just a week after meeting. He wasn’t sure how it was possible, but he found her even more beautiful now and thought it was unfortunate that she was frowning when her smile was able to light up a room.

He came towards her slowly and when she finally noticed him approaching, she said a hurried goodbye to her mother and hung up the phone. She stood up, beginning to speak but Jim didn’t listen. Instead, he wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her.

He kissed her to tell her how sorry he was and how he regretted he didn’t talk to her earlier. He kissed her to show her how much he loved her and how he wasn’t going to let any documentary producer try to manipulate that. But most of all, he kissed her because he could and after eight months of trying to pretend to be someone else in that office, he was finally relieved that he could just be him.

And she kissed him back just as passionately, understanding his actions completely. She kissed him back because she knew how he felt, she had been there, and she knew what he had been through.

Finally, they broke apart and stared into each other’s eyes. She looked as though she were about to speak but he got their first. “I love you,” he said earnestly. “And I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

She have him a half-smile and he knew he would be forgiven. “That’s not always going to work,” she told him lightly.

“I know,” Jim replied, gently brushing his lips against hers.

“And I’m still a little annoyed that you didn’t talk to me first,” she continued. “You’re not off the hook for that.”

Jim grinned. “I know,” he said holding her tighter in her arms, giving her another gentle kiss.

Pam wrapped her arms around Jim’s neck to pull him closer. “I love you so much,” she said adoringly. “To hell with the camera crew, Jim. Let’s just do what’s right for us.”

They were just about to dip into another kiss when the break room door opened and a camera guy, his camera on his shoulder, came stumbling out. Pam and Jim both looked at him shocked, neither had realized they had company and they both blushed because they knew the cameraman had seen everything.

The cameraman, however, was unfazed. “Hey guys, that was great, do you think we could do it again? The kiss I mean? In front of the reception desk? We could get a better angle that way. It’d be great for the documentary.”

Jim and Pam looked at each other confused for a moment before they both started laughing.

12:06am  
“It’s after midnight,” Jim noted, glancing over Pam’s shoulder to look at the clock on the nightstand. After they returned home, they spent a good deal of time talking about the future, finally coming to a conclusion that they both could handle. Talking soon led to love making and eventually they settled into bed together both worn out from such a highly emotional day. They were cuddled close, Jim’s arms lazily around her. “You know what that means?”

“You’re going to turn back into a pumpkin?” she teased, tapping him on the nose.

He gave her a smirk. “No, it means our contract is finally up. We can go into work tomorrow and not have to worry about the cameras anymore.”

“Until September,” Pam lamented. She began to trace circles on Jim’s bare chest. “So, are you really sure this is what you want to do? Be apart for three months?”

Jim had explained everything to her and they both felt that Stamford was the best plan of action. And although he still had his doubts about the whole thing, he was sure it was the right choice to take. “It’s gonna suck,” he said honestly. “But it’ll be alright. We’ll find a nice little place in Stamford and you’ll find another job, maybe one better than answering phones all day. I don’t ever want to be away from you but in the long run, I think we can do it.”

“So, what happens if, but some bizarre chance, Stamford closes?” she asked looking up at him.

“It won’t,” he assured her. “I promise.”

“Yeah, and you promised me last time that the cameras were around that they wouldn’t be back at all,” she said, playfully poking at him.

He let out a laugh. “Alright, you win that one. I guess, though, if Stamford closes, we’ll be right back here where we started. And it’ll be fine because we’ve decided not to let those cameras control us, right? But let’s not think about it now. Let’s think about where we’ll be next month at this time, you and me on some beach on the Pacific Ocean, away from all this insanity.”

Pam had closed her eyes. “Yeah,” she breathed snuggling closer to him.

“And we’ll be together just like we are now. Sleeping in late and having sex all day, not worring about a thing. We could find a couple of chairs on the beach and watch the waves while…” His voice trailed off when he glanced down to see that she had already fallen asleep. A grin formed on his lips. “I love you,” he whispered, giving her a kiss on the forehead. He nuzzled his head next to hers and a few minutes later, he was fast asleep.

June 11th 2:18pm  
Jim sat on a stool next to the bar, too preoccupied by the shiny new gold ring on his finger to be aware of the hustle and bustle of the airport. As he examined it, he thought in amazement as to how such a small thing would represent so much and even after twenty-four hours of having it, he still had to pinch himself to believe it was real.

“Hey, is this seat taken?” He turned around to see the most beautiful woman in the world take the stool next to him. “You’re pretty cute,” she said playfully. “Can I buy you a drink?”

“Oh, no, I’m good,” he replied with a laugh. “I’m just waiting for my wife to get back from the bathroom. She gets nervous before long flights so I buy her a drink before the flight to calm her down.” A grin formed across his lips.

“Really?” she played along. “And what kind of drink would you buy your wife?”

“Oh, a margarita. Her favorite,” he replied jokingly. “She loves them.”

“Hmm…” she responded nodding. “You know, personally, I can’t stand margaritas. Some incident a while back turned me off completely. But my husband loves to buy them for me because he thinks he’s funny.”

“Well, I’ll bet he is a funny guy.”

She shook her head. “No, not really. What he doesn’t realize is that if he ever did buy me a margarita before a flight he would be thrown up on ten minutes in.”

Jim let out a laugh.

Just then, a voice came over the speakers. Now boarding Australian Airlines Flight 815 in terminal 23.

Jim looked back at her with a smile. “Do you want me to get you something to calm your nerves before we go?”

“I’ve got everything I need already,” Pam replied warmly, reaching out to grab his hand. “Come on, let’s go on this honeymoon thing. I hear it’s supposed to be great.”

Jim gave her hand a squeeze before they headed off towards the plane.


End file.
